Trump will pursue US police use-of-force standard

 US President Donald Trump said Thursday he would pursue an executive order to encour police departments to meet "current professional standards for use of force," while slamming Democrats for broly branding police as problem. He also defended his calls on goverrs and mayors to aggressively quell violent protests that erupted across country after death of George Floyd.

Trump offered few details about yet-to-be-formalized order during a discussion on race relations and policing before a friendly audience in Dallas. call for establishing a national use-of-force standard amounted to his first concrete proposal for police reform in response to national outcry following Floyd's death in a violent encounter with Minneapolis police.

president also ackwledged that law enforcement may have some "b apples," but he said it is unfair to broly paint police officers as bigots.

"We have to work toger to confront bigotry and prejudice wherever y appear," Trump said. "But we'll make progress and heal wounds by falsely labeling tens of millions of decent Americans as racists or bigots. We have to get everybody toger. We have to be on same path."

president said nation also needs to bolster its efforts to confront its long-simmering racial relations problems by focusing on inequality, redoubling on his contention that solving ecomic issues is fastest way to healing racial wounds.

He said his ministration would aggressively pursue ecomic development in mirity communities, confront health care disparities by investing substantial sums in mirity-serving medical institutions, and improve school choice options.

tably, Dallas' mayor and three top law enforcement officials, all of whom are black, weren't on hand for roundtable discussion at Dallas campus of Gateway Church.

Dallas Police Chief U. Renee Hall, Dallas County Sheriff Marian Brown and Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot did t receive invitations to event, according to ir offices. Mayor Eric Johnson was invited but did t attend because of prior commitments, according to an aide.

Trump filled roundtable with police union officials and allies from African American community, including a member of Black Voices for Trump — many who spoke glowingly about president.

"Unfortunately re's some trying to stoke division and to push an extreme nda, which we won't go for, that will produce only more poverty, more crime, more suffering," Trump said. "This includes rical efforts to defund, dismantle and disband police. y want to get rid of police."

Activists say it isn't about eliminating police departments or stripping ncies of all ir money. y say it is time for country to dress systemic problems in policing in America and spend more on or things communities across U.S. need, like housing and education.

Top Trump visers, including Attorney General William Barr, have rejected tion that systemic racial bias is a problem in American law enforcement.