SAN JOSE — Anti-Trump protesters attacked Donald Trump supporters as they emerged from a rally at the San Jose Convention Center on Thursday evening.
One man was punched to the ground; another was bloodied; and a woman was pelted with eggs and bottles
Raw video: Punches thrown in clashes following @realDonaldTrump rally in San Jose. pic.twitter.com/U4d7vSbkf2
— M. Scott Mahaskey (@smahaskey) June 3, 2016
Protesters cornering Trump supporters as they leave. This woman taunted them. They cornered her & threw eggs at her pic.twitter.com/MiDGDBkKIo
— Sara Murray (@SaraMurray) June 3, 2016
NOW: #Trump supporter attacked and left bleeding in San Jose pic.twitter.com/kC2GVz9JcZ
— Tim Pool (@Timcast) June 3, 2016
Our video of Trump supporter who says he was beaten up coming out of @realDonaldTrump rally. pic.twitter.com/PQSxjXfonl
— Tom Llamas (@TomLlamasABC) June 3, 2016
Update: San Jose’s mayor, Sam Liccardo, who is a Democrat and a Hillary Clinton supporter, told the Associated Press that Donald Trump was to blame for the violence (emphasis added):
“Our police officers have done an extremely courageous and professional job so far,” San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo told The Associated Press by phone. “We’re all still holding our breath to see the outcome of this dangerous and explosive situation.”
The mayor, a Democrat and Hillary Clinton supporter, criticized Trump for coming to cities and igniting problems that local police departments had to deal with.
“At some point Donald Trump needs to take responsibility for the irresponsible behavior of his campaign,” Liccardo said.
Breitbart News was on the scene early, and was threatened by protesters as they destroyed an American flag.
Several journalists and Trump supporters complained that police did little to stop the violence. However, after the first few incidents, they moved protesters a block away in all directions.
Breitbart News witnessed several Trump supporters thanking the police as they left the venue. One shouted: “Police lives matter!” An officer responded: “Thank you.”
Both Hillary Clinton’s campaign and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) condemned the violence against Trump supporters:
Violence against supporters of any candidate has no place in this election.
https://t.co/PY4vYYszVf— John Podesta (@johnpodesta) June 3, 2016
we cannot stop trump’s violent rhetoric with violence – only peaceful protest in a voting booth can do that. https://t.co/o82lIVNqcB
— mike casca (@cascamike) June 3, 2016
After the fighting settled, Breitbart News witnessed some peaceful — albeit tense — debates between Trump supporters and opponents in the streets around the convention center:
There was no apparent condemnation of the flag-burning, nor of anti-Trump protesters’ repeated practice of bringing the Mexican flag to demonstrations about an American election.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News. His new e-book, Leadership Secrets of the Kings and Prophets: What the Bible’s Struggles Teach Us About Today, is on sale through Amazon Kindle Direct. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
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