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The President of the United States, Donald Trump, issued a strong warning on Friday to those who assault immigration officers or threaten federal government properties.
In a message posted on his official Truth Social account, the president stated that federal forces "will be extremely powerful and tough" in the defense of the buildings under their jurisdiction.
Trump explained that he instructed the Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, for ICE and the Border Patrol to act "forcefully" in the face of any aggression, while emphasizing that his administration would not intervene in the so-called "poorly managed Democratic cities" unless local authorities formally request assistance.
"We will not allow anyone to spit in the faces of our officials, nor will we tolerate stones or bricks being thrown at our vehicles," the president wrote. "Those who do so will face equal or greater consequences," he warned.
The president pointed to the disturbances that occurred the night before in Eugene, Oregon, where —according to him— protesters burst into a federal building and intimidated its employees.
He criticized the local police for "doing nothing" to prevent the incidents and stated that he will not allow that situation to happen again.
"We were elected under a policy of border control, national security, and law and order. That is what the United States wants, and that is what it is getting," Trump stated in his message.
The president emphasized that state and municipal governments have the obligation to protect both their own infrastructure and federal property, and that the participation of federal forces will only be as a backup, "when requested."
Such actions occur amidst the national outrage over ICE's actions, whose agents have killed two residents in Minneapolis in recent weeks during their anti-immigrant raids.
The government has justified each of these deaths and defended the actions of its agents.
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