Donald Trump tweets elderly man shoved to ground by Buffalo police 'could be' Antifa activist who was setting them up

Luke O'Reilly9 June 2020

Donald Trump has claimed an elderly man who was seriously injured after being pushed by police was an Antifa activist.

Martin Gugino was captured on video last week being pushed over by police in Buffalo, New York, during protests in the wake of George Floyd's death.

Two officers pushed Mr Gugino backwards, causing him to hit his head on the pavement. In the footage, which subsequently went viral, blood can be seen spilling from his head.

The video sparked international outrage.

However, President Trump claimed that Mr Gugino "fell harder than he was pushed".

"Buffalo protester shoved by Police could be an ANTIFA provocateur. 75 year old Martin Gugino was pushed away after appearing to scan police communications in order to black out the equipment, @OANN"

"I watched, he fell harder than was pushed. Was aiming scanner. Could be a set up?

The tweet comes as Donald Trump and Republicans seized on calls to “defund the police” as a dangerous example of Democratic overreach as the US president fights crises that threaten his re-election in November.

Mr Gugino hit his head on the ground after being pushed by police
AP

Prominent Democrats, including presumptive presidential nominee Joe Biden, are distancing themselves from the “defund” push, which some supporters say is a symbolic commitment to end systemic racism and change policing priorities rather than an actual plan to eliminate police forces.

But confusion over the proposal’s intent has created an opportunity for Mr Trump, who has struggled to navigate the delicate debate over racial justice, risking support from people of colour, suburban women and independents less than five months before election day.

Facing increasing pressure to weigh in, Mr Biden addressed the issue on Monday in an interview with CBS Evening News.

“I don’t support defunding the police. I support conditioning federal aid to police based on whether or not they meet certain basic standards of decency, honourableness and, in fact, are able to demonstrate they can protect the community, everybody in the community,” Mr Biden said.

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