June 4, 2020
Last week we witnessed the shocking death of George Floyd in Minnesota. As President Trump stated, “The death of George Floyd was a grave tragedy and should never have happened. It has filled Americans all over the country with horror, anger, and grief.” I join all of those who have expressed condolences to his family. The scenes unfolding in cities across America are indeed disturbing, but I know that this is an anomaly; this is not who we are as Americans. We will always stand for the right to petition for the redress of grievances as enshrined in our Constitution. But, protests are most effective when done in a non-violent manner and are counterproductive when they cause injury, damage to property, or loss of life. We can and will heal and learn from this tragedy — and justice will prevail.
