Trump lashes out at New York mayor, Black Lives Matter leader

United States President Donald Trump on Thursday slammed New York Mayor Bill de Blasio over plans to paint a Black Lives Matter mural on Fifth Avenue across the street from Trump Tower.

The mayor's office had said Wednesday the mural would be painted across from the president's skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan, where he stays when he visits his hometown.

"Told that @NYCMayor Bill de Blasio wants to paint the fabled & beautiful Fifth Avenue, right in front of Trump Tower/Tiffany, with a big yellow Black Lives Matter sign. “Pigs in a Blanket, Fry ‘Em Like Bacon”, referring to killing Police, is their chant. NYC Police are furious!" the US president tweeted.

That chant is not among those commonly used by protestors in New York marching to support black lives.

Similar murals to the one planned for New York have been painted elsewhere in the United States to show support for the BLM movement that's at the forefront of public consciousness following weeks of anti-racism protests.

Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser renamed an area near the White House that became the epicenter of demonstrations "Black Lives Matter Plaza" and unveiled a giant mural on the street.

Trump has changed his official residence to Florida last year, with only his business empire remaining headquartered in New York.

Also on Thursday the Republican president lashed out in a tweet at a leader of the Black Lives Matter movement, accusing him of "Treason, Sedition, Insurrection."

Trump was referring to comments from Hawk Newsome, a BLM leader from New York who on Fox News said that "if this country doesn't give us what we want, then we will burn down this system and replace it."

The comments came after weeks of anti-racism protests following the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, at the hands of a police officer who knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes.