Linwood Kaine, the son of Virginia senator and former Democratic vice-presidential candidate Tim Kaine, was arrested outside the capitol grounds in St. Paul, Minnesota, on March 4, on suspicion of riot in the second degree. Three police officers needed pepper spray to subdue Kaine, who was among six protestors arrested after counter-protesters set off fireworks, lit a smoke bomb, and sprayed a chemical irritant into a crowd during the “March 4 Trump” rally at the Minnesota State Capitol.
All of those arrested were released, but St. Paul City Attorney Samuel Clark is reviewing the case to determine if possible additional charges can be brought.
The Twin Cities Pioneer Press quoted a statement from Steve Linders, a St. Paul police spokesman, who said that a police officer ordered a man, later identified as Kaine, to get on the ground, but he refused. “The officer was able to get ahold of Mr. Kaine, but he got up, squared off with the officer and the officer tried to take him to the ground again,” Linders said. Another officer arrived and sprayed a chemical irritant toward Kaine to subdue him. “He then was taken to the ground, but continued to resist, at which point another officer deployed a knee strike to get him to cooperate with the officers and put his hands behind his back,” Linders continued.
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“After the strike, Mr. Kaine cooperated and was taken into custody without further incident.”
Kaine’s father, Senator Tim Kaine, released a statement through a spokesperson to the Pioneer Press, the Washington Post and other news outlets saying: “We love that our three children have their own views and concerns about current political issues. They fully understand the responsibility to express those concerns peacefully.”
The Pioneer Press reported that on the afternoon of March 4, several hundred Trump supporters showed up at the Capitol for a permitted rally billed as the “March 4 Trump.” It was one of several such held around the country.
The Minnesota State Patrol estimated that 400 Trump supporters were present at the Capitol and that there were 50 counter-protestors.
Speeches had been going on for about a half-hour inside the Capitol rotunda when a group of protestors tried to disrupt the event. Police said that during the protests, someone set off a smoke bomb, which apparently struck a woman in the head.
A March 6 Reuters article reported on a number of pro-Trump rallies around the nation on the same day that Kaine was arrested, where violence broke out. One of these took place in what Reuters described as “the famously left-leaning city of Berkeley, California.” The report noted:
At a park in Berkeley, across the bay from San Francisco, protesters from both sides struck one another over the head with wooden sticks and Trump supporters fired pepper spray as police in riot gear stood at a distance.
Some in the pro-Trump crowd, holding American flags, faced off against black-clad opponents. An elderly Trump supporter was struck in the head and kicked on the ground.
Other pro-Trump rallies around the country went on without violent incidents, though a few drew protests. Reuters noted that most of the rallies appeared to take place without any disruption or violence, like one outside the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing.
“How can anyone be disappointed with bringing back jobs? And he promised he would secure our borders, and that’s exactly what he’s doing,” said Meshawn Maddock, one of the organizers of the Lansing rally, which drew about 200 people.
An article posted by The New American on November 17 (after Trump was elected but before his inauguration) sought to determine what was behind the often violent “protests” (which were really riots) against president-elect Trump. The article noted:
Within a day of Donald Trump’s election, protests and riots began in cities as far apart as New York and Los Angeles and almost everywhere in between. In some of the protests, participants can be seen carrying larger-than-life Donald Trump heads on large sticks. In all of the protests, professionally-made signs bearing the same images and slogans can be seen. Since the “spontaneous” uprising began less than a day after the election results were known, it seems odd that the protesters already had signs and Trump heads all ready to go.
This is especially odd since Trump’s electoral victory surprised most people, even his supporters.
The writer of that article, C. Mitchell Shaw, posed the following questions which cast doubt on any beliefs that these violent demonstrations were spontaneous:
• Where did those signs and heads come from?
• Who paid for them?
• Who rallied the “troops” on such short notice?
• Does anyone really believe that all of this is spontaneous?
The article continued:
The answers — based on sheer logic alone — would easily be that the protests and riots are likely not spontaneous and that they are being funded and manned by the same deep-pocketed leftists who spawned the earlier protests against Trump during his candidacy and who also created other subversive movements and organizations, such as Black Lives Matter (BLM). But sheer logic aside, there is evidence that leftist elites are behind the protests and riots across the nation.
The article offered as evidence, the text of ads appearing on Craigslist in cities around the nations offering the generous amount of $15-$18 an hour for anti-Trump protestors.
Which prompts immediate speculation about where the money to pay these protesters comes from. The writer provides part of that answer by observing:
The money — coming from Planned Parenthood, George Soros’ MoveOn.org, Washington Community Action Network, and other leftist organizations — has helped create a false image that these protests are the spontaneous actions of angry, scared, young voters who are pushing back against a system that they see as targeting them. In reality, it is the very leftist organizations behind these “protests” that are targeting the participants. Once arrested, they will have criminal records. The organizations behind the lawlessness will simply “move on” to the next event.
One wonders if Linwood Kaine’s act of protest was motivated by misguided youthful idealism or if he also aspires to become a professional agitator. It is impossible for us to know. But as the son of a high-profile political figure, it might be expected that this angry young man is not completely naïve when it comes to political activism.
Related articles:
Trump “Protests” Manufactured by Leftist Elites and Manned by Professional Protesters
PRESIDENT TRUMP — Protests Fizzle, Fail to Stop Inauguration
