President Trump

They're all Americans out there.  Americans should not be at each other's throats.

I have personal reasons to be disappointed with how some leaders more local to me are acting.  Personal, individual, painful reasons.  You can ignore my conflict with them; please do.  The protests are under control here and having productive results; they don't need additional, national glare.

It's not my job to de-escalate situations that endanger people.  If it were, I'd be judging my track record harshly.

I wish you'd work harder to address everybody out there as a valuable person.  I think that would help.

America can't convulse like this all summer; every day of reciprocal violence is hurting people.

A crisis is not a time for proving leadership.  Nobody can really be a leader when people are so full of rage that they're not hearing anything.  Make them feel like people; start with that, and maybe they'll do what Americans are supposed to do, and govern their own behavior.

At this point, right and wrong are immaterial to what is happening at a person-to-person level in the street.  They are all in love with hatred.

You can say that mobs are bad, you can pick a side, you can say whatever you want.  They're all pounding on each other because adrenaline has taken over.

I know that patience and gentleness aren't your strong suits.  They're not my strong suits, either.  I have to try to conjure them when they're needed.