[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 103 (Wednesday, June 3, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2672-S2674]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
Protests
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, Monday, President Trump stood in the Rose
Garden and called for the use of military force against individuals who
have been gathering across the country protesting racism and police
brutality against Black Americans. This historic call for empowering
the Commander in Chief to militarize law enforcement in our Nation
pushes this President's reach for new Executive authority to the most
extreme level.
This follows the President's tweets since last week, threatening to
turn ``vicious dogs''--his words--on protesters outside the White House
and quoting the racist phrase from the 1967 Miami police chief,
stating: ``When the looting starts, the shooting starts,'' bringing to
mind, sadly, for many, shameful moments in our Nation's struggle for
civil rights.
President Trump said nothing to address the anguish felt by many in
this country, particularly people of color, and instead called on
Governors to ``dominate the streets,'' as though the Americans, who
peacefully exercise their right to protest, are an enemy force.
Initially, Defense Secretary Esper went even further when he referred
to cities as a ``battlespace.'' I am heartened by the fact that he has
made it clear that he does not support the President's suggestion of
militarizing the police forces and police across America. These calls
by the President to militarize cities across America ignore that for
far too long he urged law enforcement to ``dominate,'' as the President
often says, rather than to protect and serve, which is exactly what is
contributing to the challenge we face today.
The other night, minutes before Mayor Bowser's 7 p.m. curfew came
into effect, the President used law enforcement personnel to use tear
gas and rubber bullets on peaceful demonstrators in LaFayette Square
across the street from the White House. They even beat these peaceful
demonstrators with batons and shields. There are conflicting reports as
to whether the National Guard participated in the violence. I have made
a direct inquiry to the Department of Defense, and they have denied it.
According to press reports, the assault began with law enforcement
kneeling, not to express any solidarity
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with any racism efforts as we have seen some police officers do across
the country; instead, they were kneeling to put on gas masks to protect
themselves from the weapons they were readying to fire.
As soon as this gathering was dispersed, the President marched across
LaFayette Square to St. John's Episcopal Church. The Attorney General,
the Secretary of Defense, and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
all followed--only the battle that they were witnessing was against
Americans using their voices to stop racism who got in the way of a
Presidential photo opportunity.
I simply cannot understand what the President and each of these
senior officials were thinking, if they were consciously deciding to be
part of this by taking a stroll in the aftermath of the violence in
Lafayette Square and whether they approved of that treatment of their
fellow Americans.
The Rt. Rev. Mariann Budde, the Episcopal bishop of Washington, DC,
said she was not even given a courtesy call by the White House ahead of
the President's action. In fact, the bishop was outraged by the use of
physical force and tear gas in the shadow of her church to remove
peaceful protesters so that the church and the Bible could be used for
some photo opportunity.
President Trump has ``not acknowledged the agony of our country right
now,'' she said in an interview. ``Everything he has said and done is
to inflame violence.''
President Trump's actions violate the sanctity of our First Amendment
freedoms and represent an abuse of his authority. We know this
President well after more than 3 years. As shocking as Monday night's
events were, they represent through and through who this President
really is. It is wrong.
The American people will have the last word in November, but I am
encouraged to see that in my home State of Illinois officials have
rejected the use of military force and are committed to American's
right to protest. Governor Pritzker said the President's call to send
troops to Illinois is ``illegal'' and ``ridiculous.'' Chicago Mayor
Lightfoot has called to ``turn our pain into purpose'' and to ``learn
from this moment and move forward together.''
In my hometown of Springfield, IL, on Tuesday, three high school
students, young African-American women, sponsored a Black Lives Matter
rally, and 1,000 people in Springfield, IL, gathered peacefully to
demonstrate against racism in law enforcement. No windows were broken.
No one was arrested. They exercised their constitutional rights, and I
am damn proud of them. They speak for me and for America; that we still
have the right to stand up and express ourselves, and they did so
effectively.
Right now those around the President should look themselves in the
mirror and ask whose agenda they are serving and whether it is the
right agenda for America. The collective leadership of our military,
civilian and uniformed alike, needs to decide what kind of leaders they
want to be for the men and women in uniform they command and what
legacy they want to be associated with. Monday night was not the legacy
this country deserves.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Washington Post
article and the statements of the Episcopal bishop of Washington be
printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
[From the Washington Post]
Episcopal Bishop on President Trump: `Everything He Has Said and Done
Is To Inflame Violence'
(By Michelle Boorstein and Sarah Pulliam Bailey)
The Right Rev. Mariann Budde, the Episcopal bishop of
Washington, was seething.
President Trump had just visited St. John's Episcopal
Church, which sits across from the White House. It was a day
after a fire was set in the basement of the historic building
amid protests over the death of George Floyd in the custody
of Minneapolis police.
Before heading to the church, where presidents have
worshiped since the days of James Madison, Trump gave a
speech at the White House emphasizing the importance of law
and order. Federal officers then used force to clear a large
crowd of peaceful demonstrators from the street between the
White House and the church, apparently so Trump could make
the visit.
``I am outraged,'' Budde said in a telephone interview a
short time later, pausing between words to emphasize her
anger as her voice slightly trembled.
She said she had not been given any notice that Trump would
be visiting the church and did not approve of the manner in
which the area was secured for his appearance.
``I am the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington
and was not given even a courtesy call, that they would be
clearing [the area] with tear gas so they could use one of
our churches as a prop,'' Budde said.
She excoriated the president for standing in front of the
church--its windows boarded up with plywood--holding up a
Bible, which Budde said ``declares that God is love.''
``Everything he has said and done is to inflame violence,''
Budde of the president. ``We need moral leadership, and he's
done everything to divide us.''
In a written statement, Presiding Bishop Michael Curry,
head of the Episcopal denomination, accused Trump of using
``a church building and the Holy Bible for partisan political
purposes.''
``This was done in a time of deep hurt and pain in our
country, and his action did nothing to help us or to heal
us,'' Curry wrote.
``The prophet Micah taught that the Lord requires us to `do
justice, love mercy and walk humbly with our God,' '' he
continued, calling on Trump and others in power to be moral.
``For the sake of George Floyd, for all who have wrongly
suffered, and for the sake of us all, we need leaders to
help us to be `one nation, under God, with liberty and
justice for all.' ''
Budde and Curry are among the pantheon of progressive
religious leaders who have long been critical of Trump's
political agenda. The Episcopal Church's policies include
supporting abortion rights, refugee resettlement, an
expansion of health care and other issues that Trump has
opposed or not embraced. According to the Pew Research
Center, 49 percent of Episcopalians are Democrats or lean
Democratic, compared with 39 percent of church members who
are Republican or lean Republican.
Trump's longtime religious allies, who are far more
conservative on both domestic and foreign policy, saw his
walk to St. John's much differently. ``What kind of church I
need PERMISSION to attend,'' tweeted Pastor Mark Burns of
South Carolina after Budde and others said Trump should have
let them know he was coming. ``Jesus welcomes All.''
Johnnie Moore, a spokesman for several of Trump's
evangelical religious advisers, tweeted favorably about the
incident as well.
``I will never forget seeing @POTUS @realDonaldTrump slowly
& in-total-command walk from the @WhiteHouse across Lafayette
Square to St. John's Church defying those who aim to derail
our national healing by spreading fear, hate & anarchy,'' he
wrote. ``After just saying, `I will keep you safe.' ''
Trump did not enter St. John's on Monday evening. No one
associated with the church was present for his visit.
Andrew Whitehead, a sociologist at Clemson University who
studies Christian nationalism, said the president's
appearance was an attempt to promote the idea of America as a
distinctly Christian nation after his Rose Garden speech.
``Going to the church, not going in it, not meeting with
any clergy, holding up a Bible, but not quoting any
scripture, after an authoritarian speech, was about using the
religious symbolism for his ends,'' Whitehead said.
``It was a signal to the people that embrace the idea of a
Christian nation, that he will defend Christianity in the
public sphere,'' Whitehead said. ``He said he'll make America
safe. That raised the question, for whom? It's largely for
white, mostly Protestant America.''
Budde--who spent 18 years in as a rector in Minneapolis
before being elected bishop of the Washington diocese--said
the Episcopal Church disassociates itself from the messages
offered by the president.
``We hold the teachings of our sacred texts to be so so
grounding to our lives and everything we do,'' she said. ``It
is about love of neighbor and sacrificial love and justice.''
Following a tradition set by President Franklin D.
Roosevelt, Trump attended a service at St. John's before his
swearing-in ceremony in 2017. He visited the church again
that year to mark a national day of prayer for victims of
Hurricane Harvey and in 2019 on St. Patrick's Day.
Budde said she learned he was headed back to the yellow,
19th-century building on Monday by watching the news.
``No one knew this was happening,'' she said. ``I don't
want President Trump speaking for St. John's.''
The Rev. Robert W. Fisher, the church rector, said he felt
blindsided by the visit. Usually, the White House gives the
church at least 30 minutes' notice before the president comes
by.
``We want St. John's to be a space for grace, as a place
where you can breathe,'' he said. ``Being used as a prop, it
really takes away from what we're trying to do.''
Earlier in the day, Fisher said, he and other clergy were
outside the church handing out water bottles and granola bars
to protesters, and expressing solidarity with their cause. He
said he left the area to be interviewed on television about
the damage from the fire the previous night and later watched
images of the protest being dismantled ``with disbelief.''
Fisher, 44, became the rector of St. John's in June 2019
and has not yet hosted a presidential visit. The church
usually draws
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about 400 people on a typical weekend. But it has been closed
since mid-March due to the broad shutdown restrictions in
place to combat the novel coronavirus.
Damage to the building from Sunday night's fire and
vandalism will cost at least $20,000, Fisher said. But he
said the destruction should not become the focus of what has
been happening in the streets outside the White House.
Fisher said that when people have talked about the church
being burned, he has tried to redirect them, saying it was
likely one person who does not represent the majority of
people protesting.
``That has pulled away from the more important message that
we have to address racism in this country,'' he said.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Texas.