Name: Why Donald Trump's "looting" tweet was even worse than you thought
Brand: motherjones.com
SKU: motherjones-com-168
Availability: OnlineOnly

critic

Why Donald Trump's "looting" tweet was even worse than you thought

preview

Fight disinformation: for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.For Donald Trump, Friday began as many days do: with an eruption of controversy on Twitter. , the president referred to Minneapolis protesters&nbsp;as “THUGS” and&nbsp;added, “Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts.”&nbsp;Twitter promptly flagged Trump’s tweet with a disclaimer—for the —saying it violated the social media site’s rules about glorifying violence.&nbsp;Trump’s words of choice, as activists , also have a racist history. The phrase “when the looting starts, the shooting starts” originated from Miami police chief Walter Headley in the 1960s. The Washington Post‘s Michael S. Rosenwald :In late 1967, as armed robberies and unrest gripped black neighborhoods in Miami, the city’s white police chief — a tough-talking former U.S. Army Cavalry officer who parted his hair straight down the middle — held a news conference “declaring war” on criminals.The police, Chief Walter Headley warned, would use shotguns and dogs at his command. And then he uttered the phrase that &nbsp;Friday morning on Twitter to denounce the unrest in&nbsp; fueled by deadly police brutality.“I’ve let the word filter down that when the looting starts, the shooting starts,” Headley said.Headley reportedly uttered the phrase again in 1968, amid three days of violence in Miami during the Republican National Convention. Headley was out of town when the violence occurred, but he the New York Times his officers “know what to do”: “When the looting starts, the shooting starts.” (As Rosenwald writes, Headley referred to white officers under his command as “policemen,” while Black officers were to be called “patrolmen.”)Hours after tweeting his initial remarks Friday, the president , referring to his critics as “haters”&nbsp;and insisting that he simply meant that looting could escalate into violence—not that looters should be shot.“It’s very simple, nobody should have any problem with this other than the haters, and those looking to cause trouble on social media,” he tweeted.Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.Thank you for subscribing!By signing up, you agree to our and , and to receive messages from Mother Jones and our partners.Save big on a full year of investigations, ideas, and insights.Help Mother Jones' reporters dig deep with a tax-deductible donation.Inexpensive, too! Subscribe today and get a full year of Mother Jones for just $14.95.It's us but for your ears. Listen on Apple Podcasts.Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.Thank you for subscribing!By signing up, you agree to our and , and to receive messages from Mother Jones and our partners.Can you pitch in a few bucks to help fund Mother Jones' investigative journalism? We're a nonprofit (so it's tax-deductible), and reader support makes up about two-thirds of our budget.We noticed you have an ad blocker on. Can you pitch in a few bucks to help fund Mother Jones' investigative journalism?Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.Thank you for subscribing!

Fight disinformation: for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.For Donald Trump, Friday began as many days do: with an eruption of controversy on Twitter. , the president referred to Minneapolis protesters&nbsp;as “THUGS” and&nbsp;added, “Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts.”&nbsp;Twitter promptly flagged Trump’s tweet with a disclaimer—for the —saying it violated the social media site’s rules about glorifying...

public

Samantha Michaels

Ali Breland

Smart, fearless journalism. Reader-supported since 1976. Thank you for making our work possible!

Why Donald Trump's "looting" tweet was even worse than you thought

No article scores yet.

CRITIC REVIEWS

PUBLIC REVIEWS