McConnell calls for end to violent protests

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell called for an end to violent protests in Minneapolis and in Louisville, Kentucky, where deaths have sparked riots and clashes between citizens and law enforcement.

“Our city, our state, and our country have to pull together,” McConnell said in a statement Friday. “Violence does not make our streets safer. Injustice does not promote justice. Destruction does not build a better society. We will only be able to chart the future we want if we do it together.”

McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, said the deaths of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Breonna Taylor in Louisville “have shaken our nation.” McConnell said he supports the investigations into police actions.

He called for “truth, accountability, and justice” for Taylor’s family and all Kentuckians.

The FBI last week opened an investigation into Taylor’s death. Police fatally shot Taylor, who was an EMT, after forcing their way into her home looking for narcotics that were never found.

Floyd died after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck, refusing to remove even after Floyd said he could not breathe. Chauvin was fired.

McConnell condemned the protests in Louisville and said Mayor Greg Fischer reported police were not involved in the shooting of any of the seven people on Thursday night.

“Kentuckians cannot and will not accept violence and chaos on our streets,” McConnell said. “Seven people were shot in Louisville last night, and, according to Mayor Fischer, none of those shots were fired by law enforcement. This senseless behavior has to stop.”