Politics

Tim Walz Blames Riots On ‘Outsiders,’ Cartels And White Supremacists — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Joy Reid Join In

Virginia Kruta Associate Editor
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Democratic New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joined MSNBC’s Joy Reid and Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to push the theory that white supremacists were at the heart of nationwide riots.

Peaceful protests began in Minneapolis following the death of unarmed black man George Floyd in police custody. Protests sprang up across the country as video showing former police officer Derek Chauvin holding Floyd down with a knee compressing his neck. (Chauvin has since been fired, arrested and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter.) (RELATED: ‘Catastrophic Judgmental Error’: Dan Bongino Warns Rioters Not To Try Breaching The White House)

Protests in multiple cities escalated to full-scale riots — stores were vandalized and looted and some were burned to the ground.

After several nights of rioting and violence, Gov. Walz said Saturday that many of the rioters who had been arrested during the demonstrations were not local — and suggested that organized crime, cartels and white supremacists could be using the protest as a cover to incite violence.

Author and religious scholar Reza Aslan was among those who took things a step further, pinning the riots on Trump supporters.

MSNBC host Joy Reid jumped on the narrative as well.

And Reid was quickly followed by Ocasio-Cortez.

A Fox 9 report that was released Saturday afternoon flew in the face of claims that the trouble was primarily being incited by outsiders. It said that only seven of the 45 protesters who had been arrested in connection with the unrest in Minneapolis did not have Minnesota addresses.

President Donald Trump and several others have laid the blame at the feet of Antifa, with some calling on the president to label the group as a domestic terror organization.

Intelligence reports suggest that President Trump is correct and that any outside protesters are more likely to be left-leaning than right-leaning.

Walz announced Saturday that in the face of continued unrest, he had no choice but to activate the Minnesota National Guard.