WASHINGTON _ President Donald Trump promised a forceful response to violent protests across the country and threatened to deploy U.S. military forces if cities and states fail to contain unruly demonstrations touched off by the death of a black man in police custody.
"We are ending the riots, we are ending the lawlessness," Trump said in a Rose Garden address Monday, shortly before a 7 p.m. curfew in Washington, D.C., went into effect.
Trump then walked across Lafayette Square to visit a church damaged by fire, after police cleared away peaceful protesters using tear gas, concussion grenades and horses.
Trump has seized on protests against police brutality toward people of color to portray himself as an icon of law and order, eschewing the soothing role past presidents have adopted in similar moments as he seeks to turn the election-year conversation from his widely panned handling of the coronavirus outbreak.
If localities refused to take "necessary" actions to stop protests, Trump said, "I will deploy the United States military and quickly solve the problem for them."
Trump didn't respond to a reporter's question about what law he would invoke to dispatch troops to quell violence. The White House didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
"I will fight to protect you," Trump said at the White House. "I am your president of law and order and an ally of all peaceful protesters."
The Pentagon said 600 to 800 National Guard troops are being sent to Washington as Trump seeks to quell another night of protests.
An active-duty unit from outside the Washington region has been moved into the area and put on heightened alert but wasn't immediately deployed into the capital city, according to Pentagon officials.
Pentagon officials said the primary role of the new National Guard forces would be to defend national monuments, protect the White House and coordinate with Washington's police.
Violent protests outside the White House on Friday prompted security officials to take Trump to a secure area as a condition "red" was declared.
On a Monday call with governors and law enforcement officials, Trump delivered his most strident message yet as cities across the country imposed curfews and governors deployed the National Guard to try to head off another destructive evening. Many other peaceful protests also were underway mourning the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis and demanding an end of police violence directed at blacks and other minorities.
"You have to dominate," Trump told governors and law enforcement. "If you don't dominate, you're wasting your time. They're going to run over you, you're going to look like a bunch of jerks." He called the governors "weak."
At the same time, he said Americans had been justifiably outraged by Floyd's death and would support the right to protest peacefully.
Police in Minneapolis on Friday arrested Derek Chauvin, the officer who was seen on video kneeling on Floyd's neck during an arrest.
Floyd, who was on the ground and handcuffed at the time, died after saying he couldn't breathe. The episode prompted a nationwide outcry and set off protests around the country. In Minneapolis, some of those protests turned violent, and on Thursday the police station where Chauvin worked was burned.
At the White House, there ha's been particular concern about nearby protests that have led to looting, arson and clashes with police. Officials in Washington planned to enforce a mandatory curfew starting at 7 p.m. local time for the next two days.
