Federal law enforcement officials were directed to make public comments sympathetic to Kyle Rittenhouse, the teenager charged with fatally shooting two protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin, according to internal Department of Homeland Security talking points obtained by NBC News.
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Rittenhouse, 17, supported Trump and police on his social media pages before he traveled from his home in Antioch, Illinois, to Kenosha on Aug. 25 with an AR-15-style rifle, authorities said. Rittenhouse was arrested on first-degree murder charges and is fighting extradition to Wisconsin. His attorneys argue that he was acting in self-defense.
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In preparing Homeland Security officials for questions about Rittenhouse from the media, the document suggests that they note that he "took his rifle to the scene of the rioting to help defend small business owners."
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It is unclear whether any of the talking points originated at the White House or within Homeland Security's own press office.
NBC
It doesn't much matter any more since Trump has installed cronies at all the federal agencies who take their cues from him.
Trump and other officials in his administration have been quick to blame left-wing extremists. Acting Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Mark Morgan has repeated Trump's claim that organized black-clad members of "antifa" were being flown to protests across the country to incite violence.
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Four former Homeland Security officials, two of whom worked for Republican administrations, said it was unusual for law enforcement officials to be instructed to weigh in on a case involving a particular group or individual before investigations had concluded.
"It is as unprecedented as it is wrong," said Peter Boogaard, who was a spokesperson for Homeland Security during the Obama administration.
"What strikes me about the talking points is that they didn't call for calm among the public,” said Elizabeth Neumann, who served as DHS's assistant secretary for threat prevention and security policy in the Trump administration.
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Officials were instructed to bring conversations back to the need to preserve law and order.
...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.
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