President Donald Trump has been "spot on" with talking about law and order and making sure it's "very clear" that he does not agree with a push to defund police departments after the death of George Floyd, while Democrats are sidestepping the issue while not saying they definitely disagree, Republican National Committee Chairman Ronna McDaniel said Tuesday.
"Remember the Democrat Party has talked about abolishing ICE," McDaniel said on Fox News' "Fox and Friends." "Have you seen many Democrat governors and mayors across the country refuse to arrest protesters or rioters who were looting businesses? I think that this is a big issue. It's interesting to see Democrats not coming out strong and forcefully and saying absolutely we should not defund the police."
Trump has met "consistently" with African-American leaders, and has pushed for many measures for the community, said McDaniel, including Economic Opportunity Zones and the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
"What this president has done to help the black community and be part of these discussions has been unprecedented and of course he is going to continue that reach-out and listening to black leaders on these important issues," said McDaniel. "He reached out to George Floyd's family and he has been on the forefront of saying we don't want to see anything like this happen in our country again."
Meanwhile, McDaniel responded to reports that people close to the president are trying to get him to soften his rhetoric, including on the civil unrest happening after Floyd's death.
"The president is his best adviser," she said. "If you look at the speeches he has given that have not been given the coverage they deserve, what he said at NASA and the Rose Garden, are unifying messages about bringing your country together at a difficult time. He is not going to budge on law and order in this country and I think that is the right balance."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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