James Craig

Detroit Will Breathe Protests and Legal Battles

In the summer of 2020, following the murder of George Floyd, Detroit, like many cities across the United States, saw widespread protests against police brutality. These protests were largely organized by a group called Detroit Will Breathe (DWB). Under Chief Craig's leadership, the Detroit Police Department (DPD) responded to these protests with what some critics characterized as excessive force, including the use of tear gas, rubber bullets, batons, and mass arrests.

Police Response to Protests

During the protests, there were multiple documented incidents of confrontations between protesters and police. On June 28, 2020, DPD officers drove into marchers with their SUVs, with one protester being dragged for nearly a block on the hood of a police vehicle. On July 10, 2020, during a protest following the police shooting of Hakim Littleton, a Detroit police officer was photographed placing Detroit Will Breathe co-founder Nakia Wallace in a chokehold, an image that subsequently went viral. On August 22, 2020, DPD officers clashed with protesters in what activists described as a "non-confrontational, even festive" demonstration, resulting in 42 arrests and multiple injuries, including a broken rib and punctured lung suffered by a medic named Alex Anest who was following the protests.

Throughout these incidents, Chief Craig defended the actions of his officers, stating that they "executed with precision" and brought "successful closure to those events." Craig claimed the protesters posed a threat to the city, suggesting they intended to "occupy" a portion of downtown Detroit similar to the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone in Seattle, saying "I am not going to let any group set up a Seattle zone of lawlessness here in the city of Detroit, that's non-negotiable." Protest leaders disputed this characterization, with Tristan Taylor saying protesters "had not even a sleeping bag" and that comparing the Detroit protests to Seattle was "ridiculous."

Craig also repeatedly suggested on Fox News appearances that the nationwide protest movement was "coordinated," "planned," and "financed" by "a Marxist ideology" trying to "undermine our government as we know it," though he admitted he had "no hard evidence" for these claims.

Legal Action

On August 31, 2020, Detroit Will Breathe, along with 14 individual plaintiffs including Nakia Wallace, filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Detroit, Mayor Mike Duggan, Police Chief James Craig, and individual officers, alleging police brutality and violation of their First Amendment rights. The lawsuit claimed protesters were "tear-gassed, pepper-sprayed, beaten and otherwise subjected to unconstitutional excessive force, shot with rubber bullets, blasted with deafening and disorienting sound cannons and flash grenades, put in chokeholds, cordoned off in small groups ('kettled'), and arrested en masse without probable cause."

In September 2020, U.S. District Judge Laurie Michelson granted Detroit Will Breathe's request for a temporary restraining order, which later became injunctive relief, restricting DPD from using certain tactics against protesters, including chemical agents, batons, and rubber bullets against anyone "who does not pose a physical threat to the safety of the public or police."

In an unprecedented move, the City of Detroit filed a countersuit against Detroit Will Breathe and the individual plaintiffs, seeking to hold them civilly liable for injuries allegedly suffered by police officers at the hands of other protesters. On January 26, 2021, despite recommendations against it from the Internal Operations Standing Committee, Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, and 40 callers at the meeting, the Detroit City Council voted to approve a request for $200,000 of taxpayer money to hire a private law firm (Clark Hill PLC) to handle the counterclaim.

The counterclaim was ultimately dismissed by a federal judge, demonstrating what critics called the city's "legally unsound" and "morally bankrupt" litigation tactics. By 2021, the city had spent at least $350,000 on outside legal representation to defend against the Detroit Will Breathe lawsuit.

Aftermath

On July 27, 2022, the Detroit City Council authorized the city to settle the lawsuit with Detroit Will Breathe for just over $1 million. Former Chief Craig, who by then had retired from DPD and was running as a Republican candidate for governor, expressed that he was "troubled" by the settlement, calling it "shameful" and maintaining that officers had "used only the force necessary to overcome violence perpetrated against officers."

When Craig officially announced his candidacy for governor at an event on Belle Isle on September 14, 2021, Detroit Will Breathe protesters disrupted the announcement, surrounding the podium with airhorns and chants of "James Craig is full of hate, we won't let him win our state." During this event, Craig repeated his unsubstantiated claims about the protest movement, saying, "I feel like they were paid. I don't have any hard evidence. But I feel like they were paid."

Relationship with Donald Trump

James Craig has maintained a supportive relationship with former President Donald Trump throughout his political career, aligning himself with Trump's policies and positions despite some complications in their association.

Endorsement of Trump

In September 2023, prior to officially announcing his U.S. Senate candidacy, Craig publicly endorsed Trump's 2024 presidential bid in an opinion piece published in the Daily Caller. In the endorsement, Craig wrote: "President Trump needs to win this election, and while in Washington again he is going to need other leaders supporting him who are unafraid of these problems Biden has created, leaders ready and eager to work towards tackling the issues confronting America."

When asked about his endorsement of Trump, Craig stated that he "simply believes Trump's policies were working" and that was the basis for his support, not necessarily in hopes that Trump would reciprocate with an endorsement of Craig's Senate campaign. However, Craig did acknowledge, "If he makes the decision to endorse me, certainly I will accept it."

Promoting Trump's appeal to Black voters

In November 2023, Craig published an opinion piece arguing that Black voters were increasingly supporting Trump and would help him win Michigan in 2024. Craig cited polling data from The New York Times and Siena College that found 22% of Black voters in six battleground states said they would support Trump in the 2024 election, a significant increase from the 8% of Black voters Trump won nationally in 2020 and 6% in 2016.

In this piece, Craig positioned himself as an "America first" Republican committed to bringing Trump's principles and vision to Congress, writing: "In this moment of transformation, I have chosen to run for United States Senate as an 'America first' Republican to take the principles and vision of former President Trump to the halls of Congress. His leadership was characterized by putting America and its citizens first, and I intend to carry that legacy forward."

Border security and immigration rhetoric

During his brief Senate campaign, Craig adopted rhetoric similar to Trump's regarding immigration and border security. In April 2024, following Trump's campaign event in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where Trump focused heavily on border security, Craig participated in the event as one of the local officials supporting Trump.

At this event, Trump called for "the largest deportation effort in the history of the nation" and described the increase in border crossings as "country changing" and "country threatening." Craig, who was present at the event, has consistently emphasized border security as one of his top priorities during his political campaigns.

Political identity as a Trump-aligned outsider

Throughout his political career, Craig has positioned himself as a Trump-friendly political outsider. In launching his Senate campaign, he explicitly framed himself as a "passionate public servant and Trump-friendly outsider in a field of 'establishment' types." This positioning aligned with Trump's own anti-establishment messaging and appeal.

Despite Craig's strong public support for Trump, there is no record of Trump formally endorsing Craig's political campaigns for either governor or U.S. Senate before they ended.