President Trump on Friday mocked the claim by Seattle’s mayor that a takeover of parts of the city could lead to a new "summer of love" there -- even after police abandoned blocks of territory to protesters.
“Seattle Mayor says, about the anarchists takeover of her city, 'it is a Summer of Love'" he tweeted. "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 was commenting on the formation of the“Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone” (CHAZ) that stretches over a number of city blocks and was abandoned by police after they were assaulted by demonstrators with projectiles.
Police officials attempted to enter the Third Precinct on Thursday but were jeered by protesters, who have reportedly set up checkpoints with armed guards to keep law enforcement officials away. Other protesters attempted to escort officers to the precinct, to the dismay of their fellow demonstrators.
The precinct's police chief Carmen Best told reporters on Thursday that she was outraged by the events unfolding and said "leaving the precinct was not my decision."
BLACK LIVES MATTER PROTESTERS SAY SEATTLE'S AUTONOMOUS ZONE HAS HIJACKED MESSAGE
Sources told Fox News Best and Mayor Jenny Durkan have been at loggerheads over the decision to forfeit the portion of downtown Seattle to protesters, who have posted signs that say "cop-free zone" and “You are now leaving the USA.”
But Durkan has attempted to put a positive spin on the situation, responding to accusations that she is unable to control her city by describing the situation as both safe and peaceful.
“We’ve got four blocks in Seattle that you just saw pictures of that is more like a block party atmosphere,” she said on CNN Thursday night. “It’s not an armed takeover. It’s not a military junta. We will make sure that we can restore this. But we have block parties and the like in this part of Seattle all the time. It’s known for that.”
When asked by CNN’s Chris Cuomo how long the zone could look like it does, she shrugged: “I don’t know. We could have the summer of love.”
But Trump has taken a different view, telling Fox News' Harris Faulkner in an exclusive interview Thursday that his administration is "not going to let Seattle be occupied by anarchists."
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"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 Faulkner. "I will tell you, if they don't straighten that situation out, we're going to straighten it out."
The full interview will air on "Outnumbered Overtime" at 1 p.m. ET Friday.
Fox News' Vandana Rambaran and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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