In the hazy aftermath of a Republican convention that at times celebrated vigilantism as much as it deified President Donald Trump, a throng of 1,000 to 2,000 or more answered the call. “Today is about freedom and showing that antifa doesn’t have the full chokehold on Portland and that we’re taxpaying citizens and we don’t want s— tore up,” a protester named Joe Reminar told Oregon Public Broadcasting. Soon they were off, their giant Trump flags flying from the back of pickup trucks, looking every bit like the Taliban charging down a dusty Afghan road.
If the Trump caravan was looking for trouble, it wouldn’t take long to find it in an American city where peaceful protests for racial justice are often overshadowed by extremists of the far-right and far-left. Portland police — known for murky allegiances and inexplicable actions — somehow let the truck rally veer into the downtown protest zone, where clashes broke out. The caravan riders jumped out to beat up a citizen trying to film them. From the back of flag-draped trucks, they sprayed mace and fired paintball pellets, striking a New York Times reporter, while one driver accelerated toward pedestrians, miraculously missing them.
