Portland mayor tear-gassed by US agents
PORTLAND, Ore. — The mayor of Portland was tear-gassed by U.S. government agents late Wednesday as he stood outside a federal courthouse during another night of protests against the presence of the agents dispatched by President Donald Trump to quell the city's ongoing unrest.
Mayor Ted Wheeler, a Democrat, appeared slightly dazed and coughed and said it was the first time he’d been tear-gassed.
He put on a pair of goggles someone handed him and drank water but did not leave his spot at the front and continued to take gas as the protest raged — with demonstrators lighting a large fire between the fence and the Mark O. Hatfield Federal Courthouse amid the pop-pop-pop sounds of the federal agents deploying tear gas and stun grenades.
It wasn't immediately clear if the agents knew Wheeler was among those in the crowd when they used the tear gas.
Earlier in the night, Wheeler was mostly jeered as he tried to rally demonstrators who have clashed nightly with federal agents, but he was briefly applauded when he shouted “Black Lives Matter” and pumped his fist in the air.
Wheeler, 57, who is in a tight relection battle, has opposed federal agents’ presence in Oregon’s largest city, but he has faced harsh criticism from many sides and his presence wasn’t welcomed by many demonstrators who yelled and swore at him.
“I want to thank the thousands of you who have come out to oppose the Trump administration’s occupation of this city," Wheeler told hundreds gathered downtown. “The reason this is important is it is not just happening in Portland ... we're on the front line here in Portland.”
Wheeler has been accused by critics of not reining in local police who used tear gas multiple times on protesters before federal agents arrived early this month in response to nearly two months of nightly protests since George Floyd was killed. And city business leaders have condemned Wheeler for not bringing the situation under control before the agents showed up.
Chad Wolf, acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, denied that federal agents were inflaming the situation in Portland. He told CBS’ “CBS This Morning” on Thursday that Wheeler legitimized criminality in the city by going to the front of huge crowd of demonstrators right in front of the courthouse where the fires were lit and people were trying to pull down the protective fence.
Wheeler did not participate in lighting any of the fires or in attempting to tear down the fence. He was surrounded by his security team when he was gassed.
Earlier, protesters held signs saying “Tear Gas Ted” in reference to the
Portland Police Bureau's use of the substance before federal agents arrived.
Wheeler left the protest zone about 12:40 a.m. Thursday, and less than an hour later, the Portland Police Bureau declared there was a riot at the site and threatened to use tear gas, but officers never did and made no arrests.
In a statement later Thursday, police said the crowd threw Molotov cocktails, lit fires in a park and in trash cans and released hundreds of gallons of water from fire hydrants.
Earlier Wednesday, the City Council banned police from cooperating with federal agents or arresting reporters or legal observers and state attorneys for Oregon urged a judge to issue a restraining order against the federal agents.
The arguments from the state and the U.S. government came in a lawsuit filed by Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, who accuses federal agents of arresting protesters without probable cause, whisking them away in unmarked cars and using excessive force. Federal authorities dispute those allegations.
The lawsuit is part of the growing criticism of Trump's order to send federal agents to Portland and pending orders for them to head to Chicago and Albuquerque, New Mexico, to fight crime.
The motion asks U.S. District Judge Michael Mosman to command agents from the Department of Homeland
Security, Customs and Border Patrol, Federal Protective Service and U.S. Marshals Service to immediately stop detaining protesters without probable cause, identify themselves and their agency before arresting anyone, and explain why an arrest is taking place.
Later Thursday, a judge was to hear arguments in a legal challenge that the American Civil Liberties Union filed on behalf of journalists — including a freelance photographer for the Associated Press — and legal observers who say they were targeted by Portland police while documenting demonstrations.
The ACLU also had filed a lawsuit Wednesday on behalf of volunteer medics who have been attending to injured protesters.