Former Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump found common ground in condemning the murder of Tyre Nichols. Nichols was beaten by five Black police officers in Memphis, Tennessee during a traffic stop.
Footage shows the officers yelling expletives at Nichols and beating him. One of the officers was seen yanking the 29-year-old from his vehicle and yelling at him to “get the f*** out the f***ing car.”
The five Memphis police officers, who killed #TyreNichols disgraced law enforcement . They acted like gang members.
— TheLeoTerrell (@TheLeoTerrell) January 29, 2023
At one point, Nichols says, “please stop, stop,” to which an officer demanded him to turn around before “I break your s***.”
Other footage shows the officers continuously kicking Nichols as he was on the ground and later pepper-spraying him. Consequently, Tyre Nichols died from his wounds while being hospitalized.
The officers were seen celebrating the beating.
According to the Washington Examiner:
“After the savage beating ends, the officers are seen fist-bumping and celebrating their actions while Nichols is seen propped up against a police car, at times even taunting the man as he struggled to not fall over.”
Former President Donald Trump weighed in on the attack calling it “terrible.”
“I thought it was terrible. He was in such trouble. He was just being pummeled. Now that should never have happened,” he said.
The moment the victim called for his mother was the saddest part of the attack for the former president. Trump said, “that was really the point that got me the most, to be honest with you.”
“He was begging for his mother,” he added. “That’s not a question of reform, that’s a question of having people that understand what you have to do and understand life.”
Trump stated that the violence is a strong step to disband the “Street Crimes Operation to Restore Peace in Our Neighborhoods” unit (SCORPION). The unit was one of Memphis’ elite cops’ units.
The 45th president said:
“Look, the tape was perhaps not totally conclusive but, to me, it was pretty conclusive and it was vicious and violent and hard to believe — over a traffic violation.”
Similarly, Former President Barack Obama also shared his thoughts on the violence that occurred in Tennessee.
In a joint tweet with Former First Lady Michelle Obama, the 44th president called Nichols’ murder a “painful reminder” for the U.S. and advocated for police reform.
The vicious, unjustified beating of Tyre Nichols and his ultimate death at the hands of five Memphis police officers is just the latest, painful reminder of how far America still has to go in fixing how we police our streets. pic.twitter.com/ITmrNNJhiT
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) January 28, 2023
The Obamas stated that the responsibility of the attack falls on all people to “mobilize for lasting change.”
All the officers involved in the attack have been charged with second-degree murder, two counts of official misconduct, one count of official oppression, aggravated assault-act in concert and two counts of aggravated kidnapping.
