AG Barr: Televised images of DC rioting conveyed sense of U.S. 'on brink of losing control of capital'

In a continuing clash between the Trump administration and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, Attorney General William Barr said Tuesday that televised images of rioting "conveyed the impression that the United States was on the brink of losing control of its capital city."

The attorney general's vivid description was contained in a letter to the mayor, defending the federal government's aggressive response to protests sparked by the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police. As it rolled out last week, the federal reaction in D.C. – including about 5,000 National Guard troops and federal officers from multiple agencies – has drawn intense criticism from municipal authorities, lawmakers and former military officials.

Recounting the height of civil unrest near the White House more than a week ago, when a fire broke out in the basement of historic St. John's Church, Barr said that President Donald Trump requested the federal government "immediately expand the resources available to operate in the district."

"Our objectives were to ensure that rioting would end, that federal government functions would continue and that law and order in the nation's capital would be restored," Barr wrote. "Surely, you understand that the president could not stand idly by when unrest at the seat of the federal government threatened the safety of federal law enforcement officers and the operations of the United States government."

Trump and Barr have been singled out specifically for their handling of the unrest, specifically the decision to clear peaceful protesters from Lafayette Square, near the White House. The action came in advance of Trump's visit to St. John's Church so that he could be photographed holding a Bible.

Bowser called that incident "shameful" and has lashed out at the administration over what she said was a heavy-handed response to the protests. She said National Guard troops from several states were deployed to the district without her approval. And she also objected to the mass deployment of federal law enforcement agents, claiming their presence raised questions about who was controlling protest security.

Following days of peaceful protests, National Guard troops and active duty soldiers who had been called to the district on standby began to depart Friday and through the weekend.

The city's running dispute with the federal government was followed by Bowser's order for the area near Lafayette Square to be named Black Lives Matter Plaza, a directive that also included a giant mural painted on a street leading to the square.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: AG Barr: Rioting conveyed sense that U.S. 'on brink of losing control'