U.S. SEPTEMBER 9, 2020 / 2:46 PM / UPDATED 2 HOURS AGO

A Trump security chief acknowledges role of white supremacist extremists in U.S. urban violence

Mark Hosenball
3 MIN READ

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump’s acting homeland security chief on Wednesday acknowledged that white supremacist extremists played a role in this year’s urban violence in the United States, a revision of the administration’s public descriptions of the political motivations of violent protesters.

In what was billed as a “2020 State of the Homeland” speech, acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf initially attributed violence in Portland, Oregon in particular to “violent opportunists” and went on to describe how protesters had attacked federal officers with sledge-hammers, pipes, fireworks, homemade bombs and other weapons.

Wolf also attributed violence to both “white supremacist extremists” and “anarchist extremists,” mentioning white supremacists first, in a speech livestreamed on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) website.

In contrast, a July 16 DHS press release attributed dozens of incidents of violence in Portland near government buildings to “violent anarchists.” However, the U.S. Attorney’s office in Portland, which has prosecuted dozens of people for riot-related offences, has largely avoided attributing political motives to them.

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