June 2 George Floyd protest news

Two senior White House officials said it was President Trump who came up with the idea of the visit to St. John's church, but that Hope Hicks, Jared Kushner, Ivanka Trump, and chief of staff Mark Meadows were involved in the initial planning of the operation. 

The decision to visit the church came early yesterday afternoon, roughly five hours before police and military forces swarmed Lafayette park to clear out the protesters. Officials in the press office were not looped into the plan until later in the afternoon, shortly before the operation.

One senior official said the initial plan was to establish a security perimeter around St. John's church and the White House neighborhood to protect the church. Then Trump, Hicks and the others hatched the plan for the church visit.

Both officials said there has not been much second guessing about the church visit among senior members of the team. They said they feel good they "restored law and order," the official said. 

Another White House official confirmed to CNN the bible that Trump held up at St. John’s church Monday was carried over by Ivanka Trump in her white designer bag. The official said the President noticed Ivanka was carrying her purse and asked her to put it in there, and then she removed it and handed it to him at the church patio.

Hundreds of people were gathered peacefully tonight at the base of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC — a mix of black and white, young and old, looked out toward the Washington Monument.

Several dozen uniformed guardsmen and women, along with Park Police, were standing on the steps of the monument.

There were speakers and prayers and signs, calling for justice and an end to police brutality.

On a breezy spring evening in Washington, this scene illustrates the peaceful demonstration that is starkly at odds with violent rioting and looting.

“Make it quick,” one man said, “curfew is coming up in 30 minutes.”

The peaceful demonstration concluded when the 7 p.m. curfew in DC went into effect.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear announced today that the state would be reducing its National Guard presence in Louisville.

“That is a recommendation by our adjutant general that we will be following,” Beshear said.

The governor also spoke about the death of David McAtee, who was fatally shot as police and the Kentucky National Guard dispersed a large crowd early Monday. 

According to the preliminary first results of an autopsy, McAtee appears to have died from a single gunshot wound to the chest, said Michael Brown, secretary for the governor’s Executive Cabinet, who spoke about the state of the investigation surrounding McAtee’s shooting.

Brown said tests on bullet fragments will have to be conducted at the Kentucky State Police crime lab to determine what type of bullet McAtee was struck by. “At this time, we do not know that. We do believe it was a single bullet,” Brown said.

“It is our belief at this time that approximately 18 shots were fired between the Kentucky National Guard and the Louisville Metro Police that evening. Those weapons are also in our custody for further testing, and they will be tested for DNA and any other things we can get from them,” Brown added

These are the cities and states with curfews Tuesday night due to the protests across the country in response to George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Former NBA player Stephen Jackson said the reason his longtime friend George Floyd moved away from his hometown of Houston, Texas, to Minneapolis, Minnesota, was to "provide for his family, be a better father."

"That was the main reason for moving. When he called me, his whole reason coming was to get here, get away from Texas so he could provide for his family, be a better father, be a better father. His whole reason being in Minnesota was to work be drive trucks, and he was doing that. He was doing great here, turning a curve, and then this happened. So he was doing his part," he said.

Jackson joined Roxie Washington, the mother of George Floyd's 6-year-old daughter, as she delivered emotional remarks to the media this afternoon.

Washington described Floyd as a good father.

"He was a good man as a father," Washington said of Floyd as she wept. "He was so happy to have her... he loved her. He loved her so much."

"He took care for us, he provided for us," she added.

Watch:

Declining to go into numbers, a senior official with the New York City Police Department tells CNN that there will be “enhanced deployment” tonight.

“The goal is to minimize risk to the public and maximize efficient use of resources," the official said. 

On Monday, in a statement, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office said that the number of NYPD officers on the street would double from 4,000 to 8,000.

Roxie Washington, the mother of George Floyd's daughter Gianna, told reporters she wants to see justice for Floyd and for her daughter.

Washington added: "I am here for my baby and I'm here for George because I want justice for him. I want justice for him because he was good. No matter what anybody thinks, he was good. And this is the proof that he was a good man."

Watch here:

Asked about President Trump’s comments to the nation’s governors yesterday on a call where he admonished them for not doing more to quell the violence during recent protests, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said the Trump's statements were not helpful.

“While I hope that we ultimately come out of this and go on forward, handle things appropriately, we do not need the federal government coming in here and taking any of those actions,” he added.

Former Capt. Eric Adams with the New York City Police Department told CNN's Wolf Blitzer George Floyd's killing "reminded me as a child being beaten by police, and urinating blood for weeks after that beating."

Adams, who is now Brooklyn Borough President, said, "This is a moment for me," adding that the "emotion is unbelievable."

On the protests in New York and around the country, Adams said the peaceful protests "brings me joy." Adams said he is also concerned about "professional agitators" who he believes are trying to "hijack a righteous fight to end police abuse"

"Their goal is to see our cities burn and we cannot allow that to happen," he said.

Adams said he supports NYC's 8 p.m. curfew "as long as it's not tool that's used to stop people from voicing their right to protest."

On President Trump's rhetoric and comments that he'll send in the military to police cities, Adams said, "The President has been a complete embarrassment to our nation."

He added that "advice" from Trump is "something that we don't need right now."

Watch full interview here: