In one barely remarked upon moment of the debate Tuesday night, President Trump seemingly boasted about the police killing of Michael Reinoehl. "I sent in the U.S. Marshals to get the killer of a young man … They took care of business," he gloated.
The background here is that Reinoehl allegedly shot and killed Aaron Danielson, a member of the right-wing group Patriot Prayer, during violent clashes in Portland that Patriot Prayer and other Trump supporters deliberately incited. Reinoehl seemingly told Vice that the killing was in self-defense, but when he was found by Washington state police and U.S. marshals, they shot him to death within seconds.
Two witnesses and the police said that Reinoehl pointed a gun at them, but another witness said that Reinoehl was simply executed by police without any kind of warning or attempt at arrest, and one of the first two witnesses has since recanted his story. (The police, of course, are notoriously dishonest about their use of force.) At a minimum, it is disturbingly plausible to believe this was a straight-up political assassination.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
At any rate, Trump clearly does not care that Reinoehl was killed without trial or due process of any kind. In an earlier interview on Fox News, he said, "This guy was a violent criminal, and the U.S. Marshals killed him. And I'll tell you something — that's the way it has to be. There has to be retribution." Naturally, Trump has also defended Kyle Rittenhouse, the Trump-supporting vigilante who shot three people in Kenosha, Wisconsin, two of them fatally.
Whether someone is a violent criminal or a decent person seemingly hinges on only one thing in Trump's mind: whether they support him politically.
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
-
Azerbaijan attacks disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, breaking cease-fireThe 'local anti-terrorist' strikes in the ethnic Armenian enclave threaten to reignite a war with implications for Russia, Turkey and the West
-
Canada's Trudeau accuses India of role in assassination of Canadian Sikh leader
Canada expelled a senior Indian diplomat after going public with explosive 'credible allegations' that Indian agents helped kill a Canadian citizen
-
US-Iran prisoner swap: has Biden given in to blackmail?
Republicans condemn $6bn deal but it could help de-escalate rising tensions
-
Russia and Ukraine face off in The Hague over genocide case
Kyiv is hoping court will rule Russia's actions illegal but Moscow wants the case dismissed
-
Indigenous Voice referendum: is this Australia's 'Brexit moment'?
The referendum on Indigenous rights may be a moment of reckoning for the 'open wounds of nationhood'
-
Is Biden's whirlwind Vietnam trip a warning to China?
Today's Big Question Emphasizing 'growth and stability,' the president keeps an eye on Hanoi's neighbor to the north
-
Is Elon Musk too powerful?
Today's Big Question When one tech billionaire can stop an entire army on the other side of the globe, the risks might outweigh the rewards
-
Is Biden losing Black voters?
Talking Point The prospect has Democrats nervous about 2024
