The War On Cops
 
Remember a few weeks ago when videos went viral of people dousing New York City police officers with water while onlookers cheered their approval?  It was pointed out that this would inevitably lead to more violence against cops.
 
Well, this weekend that warning came true as a cop-hating mob erupted in taunts and violence against police who were patrolling their New York City neighborhood. At one point, people even began throwing objects off of buildings onto the police. Three officers were taken to the hospital with injuries and 11 people were arrested for disorderly conduct.
 
This isn't an isolated incident. Last week in Philadelphia, a drug dealer barricaded himself inside a home and took several hostages. Six police officers were shot during an hours-long standoff. Incredibly, some residents in the neighborhood harassed and heckled the officers even as the bullets were flying.
 
Meanwhile, police officers have been refused service or asked to leave restaurants and coffee shops.  Is it any wonder police departments are having a hard time recruiting new officers?
 
A few years ago, Baltimore police were so demonized that they began to patrol dangerous neighborhoods less frequently. Predictably, it resulted in an increase in crime in those neighborhoods.
 
Whenever law enforcement is attacked, it's the men and women on the Thin Blue Line and law-abiding residents who are the losers.  And the criminals, of course, are the winners.
 
 
 
Truth Matters
 
It has often been said that truth is the first casualty of war.  That certainly seems to be the case in America's raging culture war. 
 
For example, one Washington Post columnist recently wrote that President Trump had "declared a 'race war.'"  The columnist justified such remarks by claiming that the president had "defended white-nationalist protesters [in Charlottesville, Virginia] by saying there were 'very fine people on both sides.'"
 
That is simply false.  The Charlottesville riots took place two years ago, yet this lie continues to be repeated over and over.  Here is the truth.

President Trump did not say that white nationalists and neo-Nazis were "very fine people."  He not only did not say that, he specifically condemned them. 

Here is the official transcript of the president's press conference.  And here are the most relevant portions:

"TRUMP: Excuse me, excuse me.They didn't put themselves — and you had some very bad people in that group, but you also had people that were very fine people, on both sides. . .
 
"You had people in that group that were there to protest the taking down of, to them, a very, very important statue and the renaming of a park from Robert E. Lee to another name. . .
 
"And you had people — AND I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT THE NEO-NAZIS AND THE WHITE NATIONALISTS BECAUSE THEY SHOULD BE CONDEMNED TOTALLY.But you had many people in that group other than neo-Nazis and white nationalists.Okay?And the press has treated them absolutely unfairly. . . "

The president specifically said that he was not talking about neo-Nazis and white nationalists as "very fine people."  He said the Nazis and white nationalists should be "condemned totally."  President Trump reiterated that he was talking about the people who were there the day before the Charlottesville riot to protest the removal of the Lee statue.  

Here's the video of the president's remarks condemning neo-Nazis and white nationalists.  

Even CNN's Jake Tapper says the charge that the president praised neo-Nazis is false.  

Here is a CNN article from August 2017 in which they correctly reported that the president was referring to those who "came out to protest the removal of Robert E. Lee's statue who were 'fine people.'"  

Following the Charlottesville riot, President Trump addressed the nation from the White House and said this:

"As I said on Saturday, we condemn in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry, and violence.  It has no place in America.
 
"And as I have said many times before:  No matter the color of our skin, we all live under the same laws, we all salute the same great flag, and we are all made by the same almighty God.  We must love each other, show affection for each other, and unite together in condemnation of hatred, bigotry, and violence.  We must rediscover the bonds of love and loyalty that bring us together as Americans.
 
"Racism is evil.  And those who cause violence in its name are criminals and thugs, including the KKK, neo-Nazis, white supremacists, and other hate groups that are repugnant to everything we hold dear as Americans.
 
"We are a nation founded on the truth that all of us are created equal.  We are equal in the eyes of our Creator.  We are equal under the law.  And we are equal under our Constitution.  Those who spread violence in the name of bigotry strike at the very core of America."

Watch this Prager U video for a concise summary of the "very fine people" hoax.

Reasonable people can argue about whether it is appropriate to tear down historical monuments.  The left wants to tear down moments to George Washington and Thomas Jefferson too.  Reasonable people can disagree over the president's policies.
 
But there is no excuse for anyone to lie about the president's words. 
 
 
 
The Protests Continue
 
There is no sign that the momentum of Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement is waning.  Over the weekend, an estimated 1.7 million people took the streets of Hong Kong amid torrential rain. 
 
Yesterday, President Trump warned the Chinese government that it would be very hard to move forward with a trade deal if there is another violent crackdown like Tiananmen Square. 
 
Not surprisingly, Taiwan has been publicly supportive of the Hong Kong protests.  Some leaders of Hong Kong pro-democracy movement think Taiwan could be a model for Hong Kong's future.  Taiwanese officials have offered asylum to leaders of the pro-democracy movement.
 
Ironically, Beijing is lashing out at Taiwan for encouraging criminal elements and "undermining the rule of law."
 
But here's the disturbing reality:  China will not allow this standoff to continue much longer.  It is just weeks away from celebrating the 70th anniversary of the founding of communist China.  These pro-democracy demonstrations are a tremendous embarrassment to Beijing and its autocratic ruler, Xi Jinping.