The citizens of America stand divided.

The president tweets from the White House.

It goes without saying that the outrage surrounding the death of George Floyd at the hands of a police officer has sparked backlash unlike any of the innumerable other cases of police brutality against African-American citizens. It is evident, due to everything from the protests in countless major cities to the social media outrage, that many people have had enough. And what has the leader of the supposed “greatest nation in the world” had to say about the array of peaceful protests and looters taking advantage of the pandemonium?

Law & Order in Philadelphia, NOW! They are looting stores. Call in our great National Guard like they FINALLY did (thank you President Trump) last night in Minneapolis. Is this what voters want with Sleepy Joe? All Dems!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 31, 2020

Despite the fact that this is one of the many tweets Mr. President has made regarding the nationwide riots, many of them tell the same story. One claims the “Lamestream media” is supporting the violence. Another encourages Democrat-run states to deploy the National Guard like Minnesota, despite many of the states with protests are red, including Indiana. President Trump seeks to further divide Americans in a time that requires a leader more than ever. To accomplish this, he employs straw man tactics to put the blame of the more heinous, unintended consequences of the protests upon political movements. 

Congratulations to our National Guard for the great job they did immediately upon arriving in Minneapolis, Minnesota, last night. The ANTIFA led anarchists, among others, were shut down quickly. Should have been done by Mayor on first night and there would have been no trouble!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 31, 2020

It is this heavy reliance on partisan politics that won him the 2016 election. It is always “us against them,” and never “us and them”. It was a very successful tactic for influencing voters, but the same cannot be said about as a leader. How does he plan on bringing the nation together when he openly blames the problems upon half of them?

It’s simple: he doesn’t. He is campaigning. He is again relying on the “us against them” mentality to win himself another four years, despite it hurting chances of Americans coming together. President Trump’s campaign thrives upon a conflict to deflect the attention away from what his administration is doing towards the “enemy”. For his campaign, it was the press. For the pandemic, it was China. For the riots, it is anyone who is not him or his voters. 

When a politician is mistaken for a leader, misinformation and hate rule. Many have assumed the now infamous looting of stores and destruction of local businesses in Minneapolis and across the country is at the hands of the same people looking to protest Floyd’s murder. While this may be the case for some protesters, it is by no means the majority. These are people looking to take advantage of the power vacuum caused by the protests for their own gain. Thus, as President Trump blindly vilifies anyone involved, many believe the protests to be a hate-filled endeavor all around. 

Compare this to President Obama’s 2015 handling of the Ferguson unrest in response to the fatal shooting of Michael Brown. In the unrest, two Ferguson police officers were shot.

“Whoever fired those shots shouldn’t detract from the issue,” Obama said on Jimmy Kimmel Live in 2015. “They’re criminals; they need to be arrested, and then what we need to do is make sure that like-minded, good-spirited people on both sides —law enforcement, who have a terrifically tough job, and people, who understandably don’t want to be stopped and harassed just because of their race— that we’re able to work together to try to come up with some good answers.”

The people protest. 

POTUS divides.