NYPD chief blasts guv Cuomo for saying cops 'didn't do their job': 'They're giving their blood to keep you safe'
New York police chief slammed Governor Andrew Cuomo on Tuesday, June 2 after he said the police 'did not do their job' during June 1 night's melee.
Terence Monahan, Chief of Department of the NYPD, lashed out at Cuomo after he gave a critical assessment of the city's response to the riots.
The unrest came a day after thousands protested peacefully across the city over the death of George Floyd, a black father-of-two who was killed in police custody in Minneapolis last week.
Monahan was applauded after he clasped hands with protesters and took a knee in Manhattan's Washington Square Park on June 1.
"Our guys are tired, they're bleeding. They're out there giving their blood to keep this city safe," he told the New York Post. "I think everyone you're going to see is walking around cut up. But they're out there again tonight."
Cuomo blamed the NYPD and Mayor Bill de Blasio at a briefing in Albany, saying they "did not do their job last night."
"Look at the videos. It was a disgrace," he added.
However, Monahan did not hold back as he responded to the governor's comments.
"This leadership team from every angle of this department is out on the streets, working side by side with their men," he said. "And for a governor to be sitting in his office saying that we're not doing a good job, I'm outraged."
In fact, one police sergeant had to be rushed to hospital after being hit by a car in the Bronx.
"I'm watching my men and women out there dealing with stuff that no cop should ever have to deal with, bricks, bottles, rocks. I've never seen anything like this," Monahan said.
Mayor de Blasio insisted the city would be able to put a stop to the violence and vandalism that have overshadowed peaceful demonstrations over Floyd's death. But Cuomo said the mayor was underestimating the gravity of the crisis and despite having the nation's largest police force, they were not deployed in sufficient numbers.
Cuomo then threatened to use his power as governor to replace the mayor and deploy the National Guard if de Blasio wouldn't do it. This came after de Blasio shot down the idea and deemed it "impractical and unnecessary."
President Donald Trump also criticized the city's leadership on Twitter, urging a 7 pm curfew and National Guard deployment in his native city.
"The lowlifes and losers are ripping you apart. Act fast!" he asserted.
NYC extended an 8 pm curfew for the entire week amid growing complaints that the nation's biggest city was reeling out of control. "We're going to have a tough few days. We're going to beat it back," de Blasio said at a news conference on June 2.
The mayor appeared to downplay the carnage as he spoke at City Hall, while midtown Manhattan was left with smashed storefronts, one of those being the iconic Macy's flagship store. De Blasio received backlash after saying the NYPD was "best equipped" to handle the situation and that bringing in the National Guard would risk fueling the conflict further.
"We will regret it if we bring outside armed forces," he said. "When you bring in people not trained for the circumstance but still with loaded weapons and put under horrible stress, really bad things happen."
In response, Staten Island Democrat Rep. Max Rose, who is an Army National Guard member, called de Blasio's assessment "borderline offensive."
"The guard provides support, resources, and additional manpower to safeguard businesses," he said. "This isn't for the peaceful protests, it's to assist the men and women of the NYPD with the curfew, and for him to conflate the two is totally dishonest."