| Racial tension in the U.S. — and Donald Trump's attitude toward it — is back in the spotlight five months from the presidential election. Trump's critics have long accused him of using racial strife to energize his supporters, and the president's rhetoric on Twitter overnight could fuel those claims. As protests in Minneapolis over the death of a handcuffed African American turned increasingly violent, Trump referred to the demonstrators as "thugs" and threatened to send in armed forces, warning that "when the looting starts, the shooting starts." A video of George Floyd's death during an encounter with Minneapolis police officers — in which one is kneeling on Floyd's neck on the pavement — has sparked outrage across the U.S. Trump's comments escalated a clash with Twitter, which early today flagged them for violating its rules against glorifying violence. Trump yesterday signed an executive order that seeks to limit liability protections for social-media companies after Twitter began selective fact checks of his posts. The Nov. 3 election is likely to hinge largely on how voters judge Trump's response to the coronavirus pandemic, which has hobbled the economy and left millions of Americans jobless. But Trump has shown that part of his strategy will be to inject other issues, particularly a harder line on immigration and relations with China, that he used successfully in 2016 to rev up his base. Race is a topic that falls into a similar category. — Kathleen Hunter  Protesters gather around a liquor store in flames near the Third Police Precinct yesterday in Minneapolis Photographer: Kerem Yucel/AFP via Getty Images Click here for Bloomberg's most compelling political images from the past week, and tell us how we're doing or what we're missing at balancepower@bloomberg.net. | 
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