McConnell blocks resolution condemning Trump's response to peaceful protests

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Tuesday blocked a resolution that would have condemned President Trump's actions against peaceful protesters who gathered near the White House on Monday evening.

Officers used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd at Lafayette Square so Trump could walk over and take photos in front of St. John's Church while holding a Bible. The resolution, introduced by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), also affirmed the constitutional rights of Americans to peacefully assemble and that violence and looting are unlawful and contrary to the purpose of peaceful protests.

McConnell said Americans want to see "justice for black Americans in the face of unjust violence, and peace for our country in the face of looting, riots, and domestic terror," and the resolution "does not address" these issues. "Instead, it just indulges in the myopic obsession with President Trump that has come to define the Democratic side of the aisle," he added.

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In response, Schumer said McConnell and Republicans "do not want to condemn what the president did, though every fair minded American of any political party would. We certainly should condemn violence — let me repeat, this resolution condemns violence — but it is insufficient in light of what happened just to condemn violence, and not condemn what the president did as well."