Allegations of Foreign Involvement

Allegations of foreign involvement
There have been allegations of foreign influence stoking the unrest online, with the role of
outside powers being additive rather than decisive as of May 31. [168] The CEO of Graphika, which
helped the U.S. Senate form its report on Russian social media influence during the 2016
elections, noted "very active engagement" from account clusters from Russia, Iran, and China,
and as of May 31 noted that his team was launching an investigation on the matter of possible
foreign influence.[168]
Republican Senator Marco Rubio, the current acting Senate Intelligence Committee chairman,
asserted "very heavy" social media activity linked to "at least three foreign adversaries", noting
that while they "didn't create these divisions", they are "actively stoking and promoting violence".
[169]
National security advisor Robert C. O'Brien said that there may be Russian activists who are
exploiting the situation, but also, in reference to Chinese officials on social media, that "it's
coming straight from the government."[170] Former national security advisor Susan Rice stated that
the violence that was emerging was "right out of the Russian playbook", drawing angry
responses from Russian officials with Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova saying
that Rice is trying to blame Russia again for the United States' own domestic problems instead of
facing her own people.[171] Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov denied there being any
interactions between President of Russia Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump regarding the
protests.[172]
Reports of extremist activities

There have been accusations of various extremist groups using the cover of the protests to
foment general unrest in the United States. According to CNN, "although interference in this way
may be happening, federal and local officials have yet to provide evidence to the public." [173]
Far-left and anarchist involvement
President Trump blamed far-left extremist groups for inciting and organizing violent riots.[174]
[175]
During a press conference, Pittsburgh Police Chief Scott Schubert said Antifa were behind the
violence during the protests. He added, "It's just a damn shame that they took advantage of the
situation, for (...) something [that] happened in another state where somebody died who shouldn't
have died, and they hijacked that message for their own." [176] U.S. Attorney General William
Barr blamed "anarchic and far left extremist groups using Antifa-like tactics" for the violence at
the protests. "The voices of peaceful protest are being hijacked by violent radical elements," Barr
said.[177] According to a Justice Department spokesperson, Barr came to this conclusion after
being provided with information from state and local law enforcement agencies. [178] Deputy
Commissioner for Intelligence and Counterterrorism of the NYPD John Miller said there is a high
level of confidence within the department that unnamed "anarchist groups" had planned to
commit vandalism and violence in advance.[179] In Pittsburgh, a man was arrested for allegedly
starting riots over the weekend that ended in violence. The police chief said that "‘anarchists’
likely hijacked peaceful protests downtown." [180]
On May 31, Trump announced that he planned to designate Antifa as a domestic terrorist group.
Various government and non-government officials have stated that designating domestic terrorist
groups is prohibited by the First Amendment.[181]
Far-right and white supremacist involvement
On May 29, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz noted then-unconfirmed reports of white
supremacists as well as drug cartels taking advantage of the protests.[182] Although reports that all
or most of the individuals arrested were not from Minnesota turned out to be false, the presence
of white supremacist groups aiming to exploit the protests to incite violence was confirmed the
following day by Department of Public Safety Commissioner John Harrington.[183]
On May 30, Minnesota officials including Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, Governor
Tim Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, and St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter stated they believed
that white nationalists were using the protests as cover for inciting violence, [184] and that
Minnesota officials were monitoring the ongoing far-right online effort to incite violence. [185] On the
other hand, Howard Graves, an analyst at the SPLC stated on May 31 that he did not see clear
evidence of "white supremacists or militiamen" heading out to "burn and loot". [186] The University
of St. Thomas' Lisa Waldner, an analyst of the American white supremacist and anarchist
movements, has noted that the goal of many of the individuals involved in the destruction of
Minneapolis was to create chaos so as to pursue their own agendas. [187] White nationalist
Facebook groups reportedly began urging members to "get their loot on". [184] In at least 20 cities
across the country as of May 31, members of hate groups and far-right organizations filmed
themselves at the demonstrations.[18

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