Violence Breaks Out As Protesters Clash With Trump Supporters In San Jose

A police officer shields his face as protesters throw objects at officers outside a campaign rally for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Thursday, June 2, 2016, in San Jose, Calif. A group of proteste... A police officer shields his face as protesters throw objects at officers outside a campaign rally for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Thursday, June 2, 2016, in San Jose, Calif. A group of protesters attacked Trump supporters who were leaving the candidate's rally in San Jose on Thursday night. A dozen or more people were punched, at least one person was pelted with an egg and Trump hats grabbed from supporters were set on fire on the ground. (AP Photo/Noah Berger) MORE LESS
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At the end of a Donald Trump rally in San Jose, California, on Thursday night, protesters began throwing eggs and punches at Trump supporters leaving the event, according to several news reports.

Video captured by an NBC News reporter showed a crowd of protesters yelling insults and throwing food at a Trump supporter leaving the event.

The San Jose Police Department said that a few arrests were made and one officer was assaulted, but did not provide specifics on the arrests, according to ABC News.

Several fights broke out between Trump protesters and supporters. News reports characterized many of the clashes as being instigated by protesters, but in some cases did not specify who initiated them. One man was punched and knocked to the ground, leading one person’s arrest, according to CNN. And at another point, a crowd surrounded a Trump supporter, punching him in the face, CNN reported.

A video from Marcus DiPaola, described by the Washington Post as a freelance photographer, showed one instance of someone getting punched in the face.

DiPaola told the Washington Post that he called 911 after witnessing the incident, but that he hung up when he was put on hold. He then told an officer about the punch, but was told police “didn’t have the man power” to address the incident, according to the Post.

A video from ABC News showed a Trump supporter with blood on his face who said he was beaten up.

ABC News also reported that protesters smashed the taillights of a car they believed belonged to a Trump supporter and also began banging on police cars.

Protesters jumped on cars, threw eggs and water bottles at Trump supporters, according to the Washington Post. The paper also reported that protesters took “Make America Great Again” hats and burned them.

In one video posted to YouTube, a Trump supporter with blood on his head and neck told reporters that someone grabbed his Trump sign, began following him, calling him a racist, and spitting on him.

Police struggled to maintain order outside of the San Jose Convention Center. ABC News reported:

Police instructed protesters over loud speakers to return home, but at one point, between 100 and 200 protesters remained, taunting riot gear-wearing police. As about 200 police officers began marching in lines pushing the crowd out of downtown San Jose, some protesters threw street signs and empty cans.

A video from an NBC News reporter showed police tackling a protester at one point.

The violence in San Jose is the latest in a string of violent protests outside of Trump rallies. Just last week, protests at a Trump rally in New Mexico devolved into violence.

On Thursday night, Hillary Clinton’s campaign chair, John Podesta, condemned the violence outside of Trump’s rally in San Jose.

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Notable Replies

  1. Clash? More like assault.

    Bernie should apologize immediately.

  2. His whole campaign is a sick joke.

    “I went to a fight, and a Trump rally broke-out!”

  3. I don’t like hearing that anti-Trump protesters threw things at Trump supporters. Instigating violence isn’t what the good guys do and just hurts your own side. Very disappointing.

  4. Avatar for jsfox jsfox says:

    And here I thought it was not possible to lose the moral high ground to Trump. Nice going idiots.

  5. This has got to stop. It’s a shitshow we really don’t need. Somehow a bunch of grown-ass men need to be told that throwing shit at a 120-lb woman DOESN’T LOOK GOOD! Not even if she’s a Trump supporter. This shit can get out of hand too fast. People need to learn how to protest nonviolently again and they need to learn fast.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

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