ALEX MILAN TRACY/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Political leaders yawn as left and right battle with guns in the streets. The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board writes:
Cities that tolerate political violence invite more of it. Portland, Ore., has failed to learn this lesson, and it’s a miracle no one was killed amid recent clashes. On Sunday Antifa adherents squared off against demonstrators affiliated with the far right Proud Boys. Bloody confrontations have become routine in Portland, but this one was even more harrowing than usual. Social-media video appears to show participants exchanging gunfire, and Police Chief Chuck Lovell said one person was apprehended for firing a weapon.
“We are trying our best,” Mr. Lovell added, describing how “our critical staffing shortage, as well as legal restrictions, impacts our response.” Daryl Turner, executive director of the Portland Police Association, says police funding has been slashed by more than $25 million since George Floyd’s murder, and some 150 officers have resigned or retired since June 2020. That includes 50 officers who served on a crowd-control unit.
Mr. Lovell said the on day of the riot police responded to a fatal crash, a shooting that injured five people, and street racing that shut down the Fremont Bridge, among other crimes. Portland has seen 61 homicides this year, up from 32 in all of 2019.
[The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board, "Anarchy in Portland," The Wall Street Journal, August 26]
