Donald Trump doubles down on Seattle 'autonomous zone' and calls protesters 'terrorists' who 'burn and pillage cities' as he slams 'clueless' mayor for claiming 'it could be a summer of love'

  • Trump said in an interview on Thursday that 'more toughness' was needed with protesters in Seattle
  • Demonstrators have taken control of six-block 'Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone', or CHAZ, kicking police out
  • Zone includes a police precinct that was abandoned by cops and is now in the hands of protesters
  • Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best blasted city officials for decision to desert precinct and said she disagreed
  • Mayor Jenny Durkan defended the move and said the CHAZ was 'more like a block party atmosphere' 
  • However, there have been sightings of armed guards at CHAZ checkpoints and tensions in the zone
  • Protesters fortified the barricades on Thursday after cops on bikes visited abandoned precinct 

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Trump lashed out again at Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan on Friday and said the Seattle 'takeover' had to end now

Trump lashed out again at Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan on Friday and said the Seattle 'takeover' had to end now 

Donald Trump has doubled down on his vow to 'straighten out Seattle' and its free autonomous zone, calling the protesters inside it 'terrorists' again who 'burn and pillage' the nation's cities, and taking another swipe at Mayor Jenny Durkan who is standing by them and thinks they may bring about a 'summer of love'. 

Trump tweeted on Friday: 'Seattle Mayor says, about the anarchists takeover of her city, “it is a Summer of Love”. 

'These Liberal Dems don’t have a clue. 

'The terrorists burn and pillage our cities, and they think it is just wonderful, even the death. Must end this Seattle takeover now!' 

On Friday night, Durkan told Chris Cuomo on CNN: 'We could have the summer of love!' when asked how long the take-over would last. 

She previously told Trump to 'go back to his bunker' and stay out of the row.  

Protesters descended on the six-block zone in Seattle earlier this week to declare it an autonomous zone. They took over the police precinct, sending the few cops who remained there fleeing. 

Photos of armed guards and checkpoints startled outsiders and drove President Trump to declare the area full of 'domestic terrorists' and 'ugly anarchists'. 

But over the last few days, people inside the zone have likened it more to a peaceful street party where the protesters dine on vegan pizza, watch civil rights documentaries and listen to seminars and musical performances. 

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Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan said on Thursday when asked how long the free zone would last: 'I don't know. We could have a summer of love!'

Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan said on Thursday when asked how long the free zone would last: 'I don't know. We could have a summer of love!' 

Trump has said that his administration is 'not going to let Seattle be occupied by anarchists' after demonstrators took over a six-block section of the city, including a police precinct.

'If there were more toughness, you wouldn't have the kind of devastation that you had in Minneapolis and in Seattle. I mean, let's see what's going on in Seattle,' Trump told Fox News on Thursday. 'I will tell you, if they don't straighten that situation out, we're going to straighten it out.' 

Trump described Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan's handling of the situation as 'pathetic,' and asked 'Has she ever done this before?' He also called on Washington Governor Jay Inslee to send in National Guard troops to restore order.

'He's got great National Guard troops so he can do it,' Trump said of Inslee. 'But one way or the other, it's going to get done. These people are not going to occupy a major portion of a great city. 

'It is unconstitutional and illegal to send the military into Seattle,' Durkan, a first-term Democrat, told a press conference yesterday. 'There is no imminent threat of an invasion of Seattle.' 

She defended the group who had created the autonomous zone, calling their actions 'patriotic'.  

'Unfortunately, our President wants to tell a story about domestic terrorists who have a radical agenda and are promoting a conspiracy that fits his law and order initiatives,' Durkan added, according to Patch.

'It's simply not true. Lawfully gathering and expressing first amendment rights, demanding we do better as a society, and providing true equity for communities of color is not terrorism. It's patriotism.' 

President Donald Trump has said that his administration is 'not going to let Seattle be occupied by anarchists' after demonstrators took over a six-block section of the city, including a police precinct

President Donald Trump has said that his administration is 'not going to let Seattle be occupied by anarchists' after demonstrators took over a six-block section of the city, including a police precinct

Artists fill in the letters of a "Black Lives Matter" mural on E. Pine Street as protesters establish what they call an autonomous zone while protesting against racial inequality and calling for the defunding of Seattle police

Artists fill in the letters of a 'Black Lives Matter' mural on E. Pine Street as protesters establish what they call an autonomous zone while protesting against racial inequality and calling for the defunding of Seattle police

Protesters listen to a speaker as they sit in front of the Seattle Police Department East Precinct building, which has been boarded up and abandoned Thursday inside what is being called the "Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone" in Seattle

Protesters listen to a speaker as they sit in front of the Seattle Police Department East Precinct building, which has been boarded up and abandoned Thursday inside what is being called the 'Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone' in Seattle

People walk past barricades on a street near Cal Anderson Park, Thursday inside the CHAZ

People walk past barricades on a street near Cal Anderson Park, Thursday inside the CHAZ

A protester uses a scope on top of a barricade to look for police approaching the newly created CHAZ on Thursday

A protester uses a scope on top of a barricade to look for police approaching the newly created CHAZ on Thursday

Seattle Police Assistant Chief Deanna Nollette and Assistant Chief Adrian Diaz are blocked by protesters from entering the newly created Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) in Seattle, Washington on Thursday

Seattle Police Assistant Chief Deanna Nollette and Assistant Chief Adrian Diaz are blocked by protesters from entering the newly created Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) in Seattle, Washington on Thursday

 

In public statements, Inslee and Durkan have defended the CHAZ as 'largely peaceful' and 'like a block party,' indicating they believe a hands-off approach to the takeover is warranted.  

However, Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best disavowed the decision to abandon the East Precinct.  

Best posted a video message to officers Thursday in which she said the decision to leave the Capitol Hill precinct wasn't hers and she was angry about it. She also reiterated that police had been harassed and assaulted during protests.

'Ultimately, the city had other plans for the building and relented to severe public pressure,' Best said.

At a Thursday news conference neither Best nor Durkan made it clear who decided that police should leave the precinct.

Best said at the press conference that police response times to priority calls of violent crimes in progress had tripled this week. Police sources say that responses to low-priority calls have been suspended.

'If that is your mother, your sister, your cousin, your neighbor's kid that is being raped, robbed assaulted (or) otherwise victimized you're not going to want to have to report that it took the police three times longer to get there to provide services to them,' Best said. 

Durkan said regarding Trump's statements about Seattle that one of the things the president will never understand is that listening to community is not a weakness, but a strength.

'A real leader would see nationwide protest, the grief in so many communities of color, particularly our black communities, and the call to be an anti-racist society, as an opportunity for America. An opportunity to build a better nation,' she said.

Protesters have said they want to see the precinct turned into a community center or used for purposes other than law enforcement. 

Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan
Washington Governor Jay Inslee

Trump blasted Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan (left) and Washington Governor Jay Inslee (right), both Democrats, for allowing protesters to set up an 'autonomous zone' where police officers are banned

The word "people" is spray painted over the word "police" on the closed Seattle Police Department's East Precinct now surrounded by the area known as the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ), in Seattle on Thursday

The word 'people' is spray painted over the word 'police' on the closed Seattle Police Department's East Precinct now surrounded by the area known as the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ), in Seattle on Thursday

The words "Black Lives Matter" are painted in the middle of East Pine Street in the newly created CHAZ

The words 'Black Lives Matter' are painted in the middle of East Pine Street in the newly created CHAZ

Jahtia B (left), who did not want to use last name, and Sheila Lambert, both of Seattle, cheer after the Ride for Justice ride to the newly created Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) in Seattle on Thursday

Jahtia B (left), who did not want to use last name, and Sheila Lambert, both of Seattle, cheer after the Ride for Justice ride to the newly created Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) in Seattle on Thursday

The president has sparred before with Inslee and Durkan - both liberal Democrats. Inslee previously sought his party's presidential nomination.

Inslee tweeted Thursday that state officials will not allow threats of military violence from the White House. 'The U.S. military serves to protect Americans, not the fragility of an insecure president,' he tweeted.

The zone set up by protesters stretches a portion of Capitol Hill, where dozens of people show up to listen to speakers calling for police reform, racial justice and compensation for Native groups on whose land the city of Seattle was founded.

Signs proclaim 'You are entering free Capitol Hill' and 'No cop co-op' along sidewalks where people sell water and other wares. 

The leadership situation inside the commune remained fluid and unclear on Thursday night. 

Rapper Raz Simone, who had been patrolling the zone with armed men as an alleged 'warlord', came under fire on Thursday after an old post from his Twitter account surfaced expressing anti-gay sentiment. 

Simone denied that the tweet was his doing, insisting that his account had been hacked and the 2010 tweet had been altered somehow. 

Rapper Raz Simone (seen Tuesday), who had been patrolling the zone with armed men as an alleged 'warlord', came under fire after an old post from his Twitter account surfaced expressing anti-gay sentiment

Rapper Raz Simone (seen Tuesday), who had been patrolling the zone with armed men as an alleged 'warlord', came under fire after an old post from his Twitter account surfaced expressing anti-gay sentiment

A protester who did not want to be named appeared to be entering into negotiations with police on Thursday. The leadership situation in the CHAZ remained fluid and unclear on Thursday night

A protester who did not want to be named appeared to be entering into negotiations with police on Thursday. The leadership situation in the CHAZ remained fluid and unclear on Thursday night

Simone also faced scrutiny after a video emerged showing him and his entourage confronting a tagger within the CHAZ, with someone in the entourage declaring 'we are the police in this community now' before the altercation became physical.

On Thursday, speakers used a microphone to discuss their demands and how to address the police presence after they visited the precinct during the day. Down the street, artists continued painting a block-long 'Black Lives Matter' mural on the street.

'The people that you see here have all come together because we see injustice in our system and we want to be part of the solution,' said Mark Henry Jr. of Black Lives Matter.

Henry said Trump's rant about the gathering was unfounded. 'Donald Trump can call us a terrorist if he likes to, but what you see out here is people coming together and loving each other,' he said.

Over the weekend, police were sharply criticized by City Council members and other elected leaders. Since officers dialed back their tactics, the demonstrations have largely been peaceful.

The protesters wrote Black Lives Matter in enormous lettering down one of the streets in the autonomous zone on Wednesday night

The protesters wrote Black Lives Matter in enormous lettering down one of the streets in the autonomous zone on Wednesday night

Artists have spray painted rainbow murals throughout the streets of the six-block zone

Artists have spray painted rainbow murals throughout the streets of the six-block zone 

A 'no cop co-op' offering free snacks, water, food, soda, sunscreen and hand sanitizer

A 'no cop co-op' offering free snacks, water, food, soda, sunscreen and hand sanitizer

On Wednesday night, the protesters took a vote and watched Paris is Burning - the 1990s iconic LGBTQ movie. They watched an anti-slavery documentary the previous night

On Wednesday night, the protesters took a vote and watched Paris is Burning - the 1990s iconic LGBTQ movie. They watched an anti-slavery documentary the previous night 

Police officials say they are looking to reopen the precinct. At a news conference Wednesday, Assistant Chief Deanna Nollette said the barriers were removed from the front of the building after it became a flashpoint between officers and protesters.

Nollette said the precinct has been boarded up because of credible threats that it would be vandalized or burned. She offered no details about the threats and no fires have been reported at the site.

She said protesters have set up their own barricades, which are intimidating some residents.

City Councilwoman Kshama Sawant disputed accounts of violence or intimidation by protesters within the area on Capitol Hill and said it was more like a street fair with political discussions and a drum circle.

'The right wing has been spreading rumors that there is some sort of lawlessness and crime taking place at the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone, but it is exactly the opposite of that,' said Sawant, a socialist and a critic of Durkan and the police.

Sawant said she wants the precinct to be 'converted into a public resource that will actually be helpful to society.'

Members of African American Council are BOOED as they tell protesters in Seattle's 'autonomous zone' that they've 'hijacked' the Black Lives Matter movement with other causes like higher taxes for Amazon

Two black female members of Seattle's African American Community Advisory Council were booed on Thursday as they told protesters inside the city's 'autonomous zone' that they have had hijacked the Black Lives Matter movement.

Protesters descended on the six-block zone in Seattle earlier this week to declare it an autonomous zone. They took over the police precinct, sending the few cops who remained there fleeing. 

Photos of armed guards and checkpoints startled outsiders and drove President Trump to declare the area full of 'domestic terrorists' and 'ugly anarchists'. 

A member of the African American Community Advisory Council was booed telling the crowd of protesters they had to negotiate with the police to find a peaceful resolution inside Seattle's free zone on Thursday

A member of the African American Community Advisory Council was booed telling the crowd of protesters they had to negotiate with the police to find a peaceful resolution inside Seattle's free zone on Thursday 

But over the last few days, people inside the zone have likened it more to a peaceful street party where the protesters dine on vegan pizza, watch civil rights documentaries and listen to seminars and musical performances. 

Among the many stands that have popped up is one that is collecting signatures on three petitions. 

One is to defund the Seattle Police Department but the other two are to slap Amazon with more taxes and to call on Mayor Jenny Durkan - who supports the free zone - to resign. 

Now, some say the original message of outrage over the brutal police killing of George Floyd, has been lost. 

On Thursday, members of the African American Community Advisory Council - which is part of the police department - went to the zone to plead with protesters to speak to them and come to a peaceful resolution.  

'The thing is, you have hijacked this! 

'You have taken the meaning away!' Victoria Beach, who is part of the council, fumed at the crowd. 

She and another black woman who told protesters they needed to talk with the police department were booed.

Later, Beach told Komo News: 'How are we going to be heard if that's happening? 

Victoria Beach, the council president, told the protesters the message had been 'hijacked'

Victoria Beach, the council president, told the protesters the message had been 'hijacked'

'How are we going to come to the table and talk?'  

The zone is being referred to as #CHAZ - the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone. 

On Thursday, a handful of cops returned to their now defaced precinct to try to police it but the crowds set up barricades to keep them out. 

Mayor Jenny Durkan has stood by the protesters, despite ongoing criticism from President Trump. 

She said in an interview on Thursday that it could bring about a 'summer of love' that would bring people together. 

Trump tweeted on Friday: 'Seattle Mayor says, about the anarchists takeover of her city, “it is a Summer of Love”. 

'These Liberal Dems don’t have a clue. The terrorists burn and pillage our cities, and they think it is just wonderful, even the death. 

'Must end this Seattle takeover now!' 

Trump has said that his administration is 'not going to let Seattle be occupied by anarchists' after demonstrators took over a six-block section of the city, including a police precinct.

'If there were more toughness, you wouldn't have the kind of devastation that you had in Minneapolis and in Seattle. 

'I mean, let's see what's going on in Seattle,' Trump told Fox News on Thursday. 

'I will tell you, if they don't straighten that situation out, we're going to straighten it out.' 

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