Once again, the United States, the land of the free is in turmoil. 

Protests have resurfaced in many parts of the country, but the flashpoint is the city of Portland. 

In Portland, the protests against police brutality never really died down and the demonstrations are continuing for 56 consecutive nights. 

Also read | Donald Trump announces ‘surge’ of federal forces to crime-plagued US cities

And now the demonstrations are turning violent. 

Security forces are tear-gassing and clubbing demonstrators. 

The Mayor of Portland, Ted Wheeler is standing alongside the protesters.

The mayor, who is also a Democrat and is conducting regular “listening sessions” for the protesters, was tear-gassed too along with the demonstrators. 

Wheeler was seen coughing, but still, he couldn’t win the support of protesters as they believe he was only there for cameras. 

This signals how protesters want to stay away from political support. 

The American media is describing the pushback by the security forces, a federal crackdown. 

The security officials are housed at the Justice Center in Portland and are showing no signs of retreating. 

They are stepping out of the building at regular intervals and tossing smoke bombs and tear gas shells at the protesters. 

Their deployment has triggered a national debate over civil liberties, but President Donald Trump is in no mood to concede.

Trump is calling the protests and anti-police crusade, and is justifying his decision by accusing “extreme politicians” of fanning the flames. 

The US president has launched a plan, known as “Operation Legend”, in which federal agents are sent to tackle violence in any city that sees the slightest of protest in the coming days. 

Under this operation, federal law enforcement agents, which includes the FBI and US Marshals Service, will help local police in combat what Trump calls as a surge in violent crime. 

Over the recent weeks, the White House is only focussing on incidents of crime and not on the cause of protests. 

For Trump, every protester is either a criminal, a political tool, a left-radical or a terrorist. But when it comes to racial discrimination and police brutality, he deflects all questions. 

A similar strategy is followed by the US president every time he was asked about his response to the pandemic. 

However, now he has had a change of heart, at least as far as the coronavirus outbreak is concerned. 

He no longer considers coronavirus as just a flu. He wears a mask wherever he goes, 

“Wear it in the hospital. Weat it when you’re in a group. Wear it in the elevator. Wear it when there are people around.” Trump said.

Trump took six months to say this, however, better late than never.