Despite new criticism, Trump told Walz in 2020 he was 'very happy' with his handling of George Floyd protests
Allies of Donald Trump are slamming VP candidate Tim Walz for his handling of riots in the wake of George Floyd’s murder -- but Trump expressed his support at the time.
abcnews.go.com
In the hours after Vice President Kamala Harris announced Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, allies of former President Donald Trump rushed to denigrate the Minnesota Democrat, seizing on criticism of his handling of the riots in the wake of George Floyd's murder in May 2020.
"He allowed rioters to burn down the streets of Minneapolis," Ohio Sen. JD Vance, the Republican candidate for vice president, said Tuesday.
But at the time, Trump expressed support for Walz's handling of the protests, according to a recording of a phone call obtained by ABC News -- telling a group of governors that Walz "dominated," and praising his leadership as an example for other states to follow.
"I know Gov. Walz is on the phone, and we spoke, and I fully agree with the way he handled it the last couple of days," Trump told a group of governors on June 1, 2020, according to a recording of the call, in which he also called Walz an "excellent guy."
"I was very happy with the last couple of days, Tim," Trump continued. "You called up big numbers and the big numbers knocked them out so fast it was like bowling pins."