Seattle radio host Jason Rantz said Monday that much of the media is misrepresenting the rioting in America’s cities as peaceful protests.
“What we are seeing is violence,” Rantz told Fox News’ “Tucker Carlson Tonight.” “What we saw was a riot and anyone who is says otherwise is lying to you. I understand that there is some nuance to go in to when you’re taking about a very large crowd and there are two or three bad actors. But the entire crowd is almost full of bad actors.”
Talking about Saturday’s riot in Seattle, the journalist said it would take “a master class of gaslighting” to depict the events as a peaceful protest — “because I know what I saw and I know what a lot of people who saw the images that I posted online saw, which was violence, which was arson against five construction trailers.” (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE PHOTOS: Portland Rioters Burn American Flag, Break Down Fencing At Federal Courthouse As Officers Respond En Masse)
Noting that a Starbucks and other stores were overrun by rioters, Rantz said, “but we are being told that it’s peaceful or maybe it’s just a few people, a few bad apples in a larger crowd — as if they were redecorating the Starbucks with their rocks, as if they were celebrating police by throwing fireworks at them.”
The radio host said that the ongoing riots are unrelated to the death of George Floyd after his arrest by Minneapolis police. “This has everything to do with a specific ideology and I think there are politicians and media members who believe that this is going to create enough momentum and chaos to get Donald Trump out of office.”
Rantz said he thought that strategy was “a mistake” and that it would ultimately “backfire” on Trump’s opponents.
In the meantime, Rantz said some Democrats “are willing to sit by and see some of these cities completely get destroyed and yes some people lose their lives.”
“It’s an evil position to take,” he said.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) continues to gather and assess intelligence on rioters, a senior department official revealed Thursday.
Police officers block a street as city crews dismantle the Capitol Hill Organized Protest (CHOP) area outside of the Seattle Police Department’s vacated East Precinct on July 1, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by David Ryder/Getty Images)
Protests and riots in Portland have resulted in tens of millions of dollars in damages to the community, according to the Portland Tribune. (RELATED: Maxine Waters: Sending ‘Paramilitary Police’ To Cities May Be Trump’s Plot To Stay In Power)
Democratic Oregon Rep. Earl Blumenauer said last Monday that “Portland, Oregon is not out of control” during a speech on the House floor.