Several big-city mayors that have seen upticks in violent crime and escalating clashes between police and protesters are demanding federal agents be withdrawn from their cities — and any plans for more federal deployments be halted.
In two separate letters — one addressed to Attorney General Bill Barr and Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf and the other to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, both Democrats, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican — the mayors expressed objection to the presence of federal agents conducting law enforcement activities in their cities without coordinating with local authorities.
“Deployment of federal forces in the streets of our communities has not been requested nor is it acceptable,” the letter reads.
Both letters are signed by Portland, Ore., Mayor Ted Wheeler; Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms; Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot; Washington D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser; Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan and Kansas Cty, Mo., Mayor Quinton Lucas.
They cited the challenges facing multiple governments across the country: the coronavirus, the economic downturn and the ongoing protests. Furthermore, they accused Trump of deploying federal forces for “political purposes.”
“But the President and his administration have demonstrated little interest in engaging with our communities in meaningful ways to address these challenges,” the letter said. “Instead, he is politicizing conflict, creating an environment of fear and mistrust, and raising the prospect of more deployments of federal forces… this is an abuse of power.”
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