US President-elect Donald Trump has praised protesters’ “passion” after a new night of demonstrations against his election victory that included rioting in Portland, Oregon.
“Love the fact that the small groups of protesters last night have passion for our great country,” he tweeted. “We will all come together and be proud!”
He had previously blamed the unrest on “professional protesters”.
Mr Trump is expected to announce some of his future staff shortly.
“Busy day planned in New York,” he tweeted. “Will soon be making some very important decisions on the people who will be running our government.”
The Republican is due to be inaugurated on 20 January, taking over the White House from Democrat Barack Obama, who served two terms.
Image copyright@EALDONALDTRUMPMr Obama, one of Mr Trump’s most withering critics during the election campaign, said his priority was to “facilitate a transition that ensures our president-elect is successful”.
But Harry Reid, the Democrats’ outgoing leader in the Senate, said Mr Trump’s victory had “emboldened the forces of hate and bigotry”. It “does not feel like America”, he added.
‘Galvanised’
Protests have taken place in US cities on both nights since the result of the election, which Mrs Clinton lost for the Democrats despite enjoying a lead in most opinion polls.
Only on Thursday, Mr Trump had tweeted: “Just had a very open and successful presidential election. Now professional protesters, incited by the media, are protesting. Very unfair!”
Cars were damaged during the unrest in Portland
Shop windows were broken in Oregon’s largest city
But most protests on Thursday night were peaceful. Here a protester in Los Angeles waves a dummy head of Mr Trump
Protesters turned out again in New York
They demonstrated outside Trump Tower in the cityAbout 4,000 demonstrators gathered in the centre of Portland, the largest city in Oregon, which voted in favour of Mrs Clinton.
Some protesters smashed shop and car windows, threw firecrackers and set rubbish alight. Objects were thrown at the police, who responded with pepper spray and rubber baton rounds.
Police declared a riot and made 26 arrests.
Spencer and Kristen Foxworth, who left the protest before it turned violent, told the BBC most of the demonstrators were just ordinary people like themselves who were horrified by some of the things Mr Trump stood for.
“This is not any sense of a hangover, this is more like the galvanising effect,” Mr Foxworth told Outside Source. “People who were quiet, were polite or not activists by any means – I mean myself, for example – are now galvanised by this. Trump now has the Senate and the House, and there will be very little checks and balances on his actions.”
There were no reports of violence at the other protests:
- Demonstrators in Minneapolis briefly blocked an interstate highway in both directions
- In Philadelphia, crowds gathered near City Hall holding placards bearing slogans such as “Not Our President”, “Trans Against Trump” and “Make America Safe For All”
- In Baltimore, police say a peaceful crowd of 600 people marched through the city, blocking traffic
- In San Francisco, high school students waved rainbow banners and Mexican flags
- A small crowd also gathered outside Trump Tower in Chicago while protesters also returned to Trump Tower in New York for a second night