Barr formed a Task Force on Anti-Government Extremists. Echoing right-wing propaganda from Pinochet to Putin, Barr claimed that the protests had been “hijacked by violent radical elements” and were “fortified by foreign entities seeking to sow chaos and disorder in our society.” The over 400 incidents of police physically assaulting or arresting journalists who covered the protests suggests that Trump’s anti-press propaganda had been effective.
