Bill Barr, US Minister of Justice and pillar of Donald Trump's government, was heard on Tuesday July 28 by the Foreign Affairs Judicial Commission, controlled by the Democrats. The head of this commission, Jerry Nadler, immediately accused him of "aiding and supporting the worst mistakes of the" Republican president.

"Under your leadership," the ministry "flooded the streets of American cities with federal agents" to "provide footage for Donald Trump's campaign clips," asserted the elected Democrat. "Shame on you, Attorney General," he added.

Without departing from the coolness that characterizes him, Bill Barr presented himself as a defender of "the rule of law", echoing the Republican president who hopes to win a second term on November 3 with a focused message on "law and order".

"Violent rioters and anarchists have hijacked legitimate protests to cause senseless damage and sow destruction," he said, painting an apocalyptic picture of the situation in Portland, Oregon's largest city in the North-west.

>> To see, our Debate: "Donald Trump: the temptation of the coup?"

According to him, "hundreds of rioters" equipped "with slingshots, tasers, hammers, saws, knives, guns, explosives ..." engage there every night in "an attack against the federal government" and do not try, "not even superficially, to link their actions to the death of George Floyd or to legitimate calls for reform."

Bill Barr ready to send more reinforcements

The death of this black forty-something, suffocated on May 25 in Minneapolis by a white policeman, triggered huge anti-racist protests across the United States. The mobilization weakened considerably, but pockets of protest persisted, especially in Portland, a city clearly marked on the left.

The deployment of federal agents dressed in paramilitary clothing has hardened the movement and clashes occur every night between the police and the protesters. This weekend, 22 people were arrested again.

A total of 124 agents have been dispatched to the scene since July 4, confirmed Bill Barr, saying he was ready to send further reinforcements, despite opposition from local elected officials. One hundred agents from the Marshals, a federal unit, have been "identified in case there is a need to replace or assist the agents stationed there," a spokesperson told AFP.

This situation gives rise to political readings at the antipodes, which were expressed forcefully during the debates before the committee.

Elected Democrats accused federal agents of attacking "peaceful protesters" and adding fuel to a calming down situation. The Republicans, with a lengthy video edit, insisted on the violence of the protesters and accused the Democratic leaders of being "radical leftists".

"Demonized" law enforcement agencies

During his hearing, Bill Barr also defended the police, denying that they harbor "systematic racism".

The police have been "demonized" by anti-racist demonstrators, to the point of becoming "reluctant to risk", he lamented. According to him, this has led to an increase in crime in several cities, including Chicago, again justifying the intervention of federal forces. 

As for his disputed interventions in the court files of relatives of President Trump, Bill Barr vowed to have exercised "his judgment in complete independence".

Referring to "the bogus scandal of Russiagate", the minister however took up the thesis of Donald Trump who always spoke of "witch hunts" about the investigations into a possible collusion between Moscow and his campaign team in 2016. This investigation poisoned the first half of his mandate before concluding on an absence of evidence.

With AFP

The summary of the week France 24 invites you to come back to the news that marked the week

I subscribe

Take international news everywhere with you! Download the France 24 application

google-play-badge_FR