White House may deploy federal troops to quell Philadelphia riots
The White House is monitoring widespread riots in Philadelphia and is prepared to deploy federal troops, an administration official said Tuesday.
“We’re monitoring the situation closely,” White House communications director Alyssa Farah told “Fox & Friends.” “If necessary we’ll be standing by and prepared to deploy federal resources.”
“I want to make one thing clear, President Trump will not tolerate any violence directed at America’s law enforcement,” Farah said. “And look, the actual case, we’re going to let the facts play out, let the investigation play out. But we will not tolerate lawlessness in our streets.”
The unrest was sparked by the police shooting death of a knife-wielding man on Monday.
Asked if the feds would wait for Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney to call in the troops, Farah said, “That’s a question for DOJ and the Department of Homeland Security.
“But I know this president has made clear before, whether it was in Seattle or Portland or others, we’re prepared to deploy federal law enforcement if necessary, so I’m sure those conversations are ongoing now,” she said.
Kenney, a Democrat, has not addressed the possible deployment of federal forces.
Protests in the City of Brotherly Love erupted following the fatal police shooting of Walter Wallace, who was shot by cops around 4 p.m. Monday after refusing repeated requests to drop a knife.
The action became increasingly violent and led to widespread looting, arson, and violent clashes with police that left about 30 Philly cops injured and led to at least 33 arrests as of Tuesday morning.
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