Categories: Politics

Biden tells Black voters Trump wanted to tear gas them during ‘peaceful’ George Floyd protests

President Biden, while drumming up support from Black voters in Philadelphia on Wednesday, said former President Trump wanted to tear gas those who “peacefully protested” George Floyd’s murder in 2020.

Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris appeared at Girard College, a predominantly Black boarding school in Philadelphia, thanking Black voters for helping to clinch presidential victory in November 2020.

During his speech, the president focused on items that his administration worked on to better the lives of Black voters, including the elimination of lead pipes for safer drinking water; the removal of pollution near fenceline communities; affordable high-speed internet; and the protection of the Affordable Health Care Act.

“A promise made, and a promise kept,” Biden said.

2024 REMATCH: TRUMP AIMS TO EXPAND THE MAP IN HIS BATTLE WITH BIDEN

President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign rally at Girard College on Wednesday in Philadelphia. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

As he made his pitch to the room, Biden pulled no punches toward his chief opponent in the presidential election.

Biden told the crowd that Trump called Jan. 6 rioters patriots and that he wants to pardon every one of them.

“Let me ask you: What do you think [Trump] would have done on Jan. 6, if Black Americans had stormed [the Capitol],” Biden asked. “I don’t think he’d be talking about pardons. This is the same guy who wanted to tear gas you as you peacefully protested George Floyd’s murder.”

Trump’s campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Fox News Digital.

TRUMP AHEAD OF BIDEN IN THESE KEY SWING STATES: POLL

Smoke rises from a fire on a police cruiser, May 30, 2020, in Philadelphia, during riots that erupted after the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis.  (AP Photo/Matt Rourke/File)

In May 2020, public protests and demonstrations in Philadelphia in response to the death of Floyd and against alleged police brutality started out as peaceful assemblies before turning violent.

The violence involved defacing an iconic statue of famed former Philadelphia Mayor Frank Rizzo, demonstrators climbing atop glass fixtures near the SEPTA subway entrance, and at least a dozen storefronts along the popular Chestnut and Walnut street corridors getting looted or defaced.

Several Philadelphia Police Department vehicles were reportedly set ablaze in the vicinity — as well as a Pennsylvania State Police cruiser — and a Starbucks was seen engulfed in flames on Dilworth Plaza, which sits along the west rampart of City Hall.

FIRST LADY JILL BIDEN WARNS ‘THE VIEW’ WE WILL LOSE ALL OF OUR RIGHTS’ IF TRUMP GETS ANOTHER SCOTUS JUDGE

An undated photo of George Floyd, who died May 25, 2020, after Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck outside a convenience store where Floyd tried to pass a counterfeit $20 bill. (Christopher Harris via AP/File)

Police officers ultimately equipped themselves in riot gear before reportedly confronting a crowd near the Municipal Services Building at 16th and Arch streets. The officers were said to have pressed the crowd back as they threw projectiles, and tried to push through the police line by using a fence.

As a result of the initial night of protests, over a dozen police officers were injured and a mandatory curfew was put in place.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The White House did not immediately respond to inquiries from Fox News Digital seeking clarification on Biden’s remarks about the protests being peaceful.

Protests and riots broke out across the nation in the spring and summer of 2020, after Floyd, 46, died in Minneapolis police custody.

Fox News Digital’s Brooke Singman contributed to this report.

Share

Recent Posts

Hakeem Jeffries breaks Kevin McCarthy record while stalling Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’

Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., shattered a speech record in the House of Representatives on…

9 minutes ago

GOP lawmakers rebuke Elon Musk’s primary threats, say Trump’s legislation ‘something we’ve got to do’

As lawmakers march toward a vote on President Donald Trump’s "big, beautiful bill," House Republicans…

9 minutes ago

Rubio-run State Department dumps Biden-era DEI hiring criteria, replaces with ‘fidelity’

FIRST ON FOX: The State Department has changed its hiring and promoting criteria for foreign…

9 minutes ago

Colby’s China-focused Pentagon playbook sparks Ukraine arms freeze

A recent pause in the U.S. sending Patriot missiles and ammunition to Ukraine is part…

9 minutes ago

Violent criminal gangs have ‘near-total control’ of world nation’s capital, UN says

close Video Fox News Flash top headlines for July 3 Fox News Flash top headlines…

50 minutes ago

Girl on Disney cruise fell through porthole as dad jumped to save her in 20-minute fight for survival: police

close Video Dad and daughter reportedly rescued after they went overboard on cruise A young…

2 hours ago