--- title: Obama: Attack on Baton Rouge Cops Was 'Work of Cowards' description: Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings joined several political figures in mourning the deaths of three police officers fatally shot in Baton Rouge, La. canonical: https://time.com/4409741/baton-rouge-police-barack-obama/ author: Melissa Chan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-07-17T19:18:50.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-13T06:03:24.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: President Obama: Killing of Baton Rouge Cops Was 'Work of Cowards' og:description: "These attacks are the work of cowards who speak for no one" og:url: https://time.com/4409741/baton-rouge-police-barack-obama/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9c781109b2e38c41/69889c3b196cf44ed103c6d6/barack-obama-baton-rouge-police-shooting.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: <> on July 15, 2016 in Washington, DC. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: President Obama: Killing of Baton Rouge Cops Was 'Work of Cowards' twitter:description: "These attacks are the work of cowards who speak for no one" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9c781109b2e38c41/69889c3b196cf44ed103c6d6/barack-obama-baton-rouge-police-shooting.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 video:duration: 01:19 video:published: 2016-07-17 section: politics topics: police shooting, violence against law enforcement, Baton Rouge shooting, criminal investigation, public responsibility, political rhetoric, social tension genre: news, official statement tones: somber, urgent, measured, appeal emotions: grief (high), anger (medium), hope (low) sentiment: negative audience: general news audiences, law enforcement community, local residents, policymakers organizations: Baton Rouge police content_suitability: violence [00:07-01:19]; death [00:00-00:53]; crime [00:20-00:53]; tragedy [00:07-00:29] transcript_source: automatic transcription transcript_reviewed: not applicable ---  # President Obama: Killing of Baton Rouge Cops Was 'Work of Cowards' > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=ea6d4256-978f-4086-b8d4-f3ad9aa8af57&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: At Least 3 Police Officers Shot and Killed in Baton Rouge [Watch (HLS stream): At Least 3 Police Officers Shot and Killed in Baton Rouge](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/DC2oG0v6.m3u8) (1:19)  _Published 2016-07-17. At least three police officers in Baton Rouge, La. were killed and three others were wounded during a shooting Sunday, officials said._ Description, summary, key points, chapters, key quotes, questions and transcript, where present, were produced automatically from the video or its captions and were not reviewed. ## Summary The video is a short official statement responding to a shooting in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in which police officers were attacked. The speaker says the day has been very tough for the city, the state and the country, and that the investigation has many moving parts. The speaker states there is no place for more violence and that attacks on police are an attack on everyone. The speaker closes by calling for tempered words and open hearts rather than inflammatory rhetoric or politically motivated accusations. ## Key points - The speaker says today has been a very tough day in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and the country. (00:07) - The investigation has many moving parts, and each one will be pursued. (00:20) - The speaker states there is currently no active shooting scenario. (00:24) - The speaker says the shooting does not address any injustice, perceived or real, and is an injustice in itself. (00:29) - The speaker states there simply is no place for more violence. (00:50) - The speaker says attacks on police are an attack on all of us and nothing justifies violence against law enforcement. (00:53) - The speaker calls for avoiding inflammatory rhetoric and careless accusations used to score political points or advance an agenda. (00:59) - The speaker urges everyone to temper their words and open their hearts. (01:05) ## Chapters - [00:00 to 00:20] Opening reaction to a difficult day. The speaker describes the day as very tough for Baton Rouge, Louisiana and the country. - [00:20 to 00:50] Investigation and condemnation of the shooting. The speaker notes the investigation's many parts and condemns the shooting as an injustice in itself. - [00:50 to 01:19] Call for restraint and calm words. The speaker rejects violence against police and urges tempered language and open hearts from everyone. ## Key quotes - [00:07] speaker: "Today has been a very tough day here in Baton Rouge and in Louisiana and in our country." - [00:29] speaker: "It doesn't address any injustice perceived or real. It is just an injustice in and of itself." - [00:50] speaker: "There simply is no place for more violence." - [00:53] speaker: "Attacks on police are an attack on all of us. Nothing justifies violence against law enforcement." - [01:05] speaker: "We need to temper our words and open our hearts." ## Questions this video answers - What happened in Baton Rouge that the speaker is responding to? [00:07] - Is there an active shooting scenario at the time of the statement? [00:24] - How does the speaker view violence against police? [00:53] - What does the speaker say is needed instead of inflammatory rhetoric? [01:05] - Does the speaker consider the shooting to address any injustice? [00:29] ## Content suitability - violence [00:07-01:19]: Discusses a shooting that killed officers and calls for an end to violence. - death [00:00-00:53]: References officers being killed in a shooting. - crime [00:20-00:53]: Refers to an active criminal investigation into an attack on police. - tragedy [00:07-00:29]: Describes the day as very tough and the shooting as an injustice.  by [Melissa Chan](https://time.com/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan Updated: Dec 13, 2023 6:03 AM UTCPublished: Jul 17, 2016 7:18 PM UTC At least three police officers in Baton Rouge, La. were killed and three others were wounded during a shooting Sunday, officials said.  by [Melissa Chan](https://time.com/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan Updated: Dec 13, 2023 6:03 AM UTCPublished: Jul 17, 2016 7:18 PM UTC President Barack Obama on Sunday condemned “in the strongest sense of the word” the [attack in Baton Rouge that left three police officers dead](http://time.com/4409654/baton-rouge-police-shooting/?xid=homepage) and another three wounded, calling the assault the “work of cowards.” The president said he has offered his “full support” to federal and local authorities as they investigate what prompted the killings about a half mile from Baton Rouge police headquarters. At least one suspect was killed in a shootout with authorities just before 9 a.m. on Airline Highway, authorities said. The fatal shootings in Baton Rouge follow a suspected sniper’s ambush on Dallas police officers earlier this month. Five police officers were killed during a protest against recent police shootings in Minnesota and Louisiana. “For the second time in two weeks, police officers who put their lives on the line for ours every day were doing their job when they were killed in a cowardly and reprehensible assault,” Obama said in a [statement](https://twitter.com/ABC/status/754748714401558528/photo/1). “These are attacks on public servants, on the rule of law, and on civilized society, and they have to stop.” “There is no justification for violence against law enforcement. None,” he added. “These attacks are the work of cowards who speak for no one. They right no wrongs. They advance no causes.” It’s unclear if the suspect targeted police officers or if the officers were shot dead while responding to a call about a man carrying a rifle and walking around the area, dressed in all black. Baton Rouge Police Department officers exchanged in gunfire with the suspect after spotting him a nearby convenience store. The suspect, whose identity has not yet been released, was shot dead at the scene, Edmonson said. Obama, speaking at a news conference, later said regardless of the suspect’s motive, the latest incident “underscores the danger that police across the country confront every single day.” “Nothing justifies violence against law enforcement,” Obama said. “Justice will be done.” “I know whenever this happens, wherever this happens, you feel it. Your families feel it,” he added before mentioning that he only days ago traveled to Dallas for the memorial services of the officers slain in the Texas city. “I said that killer would not be the last person who tries to make us turn on each other, nor will today’s killer. It is up to us to make sure they fail,” Obama said. The president also condemned “inflammatory rhetoric” that he said worsens situations. “We need to temper our words and open our hearts. All of us,” he said. “We need what we saw in Dallas this week as a community came together to restore order. Only we can prove, through words and through deeds, that we can’t be divided.” [Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings](http://time.com/4399164/dallas-shooting-mayor-mike-rawlings-prayer-vigil/) joined Obama and several notable political figures in mourning the deaths of the Baton Rouge officers. “Reports out of Baton Rouge this morning of three officers killed and others wounded are deeply disturbing. This must stop,” Rawlings said in a statement. “Violence against our police officers under any circumstances is not acceptable and poses a grave threat to all of us. Those peacefully protesting police across the country must swiftly condemn this type of violence against law enforcement.” Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump also weighed in, demanding “law and order.” “We grieve for the officers killed in Baton Rouge today,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “How many law enforcement and people have to die because of a lack of leadership in our country?” > [](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/754730058913308673) Hillary Clinton issued a statement, calling for unity. “We must not turn our backs on each other,” Clinton said in a statement. “We must not be indifferent to each other. We must all stand together to reject violence and strengthen our communities.” House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi shared the same sentiment, calling for peace and justice across the country. “We are united in our grief for the victims, our prayers for the survivors, and our steadfast belief that we must work together to disarm hate in all of its forms,” she said in a statement. “We must continue to confront violence with peace, despair with understanding, and hatred with love,” Pelosi added. “Together, we must act to end the divisions that lead to violence in all of our communities.” > [](https://twitter.com/NancyPelosi/status/754740814224338944) > [](https://twitter.com/Chirlane/status/754735023153086465) > [](https://twitter.com/RepHankJohnson/status/754735889960407040) > [](https://twitter.com/timkaine/status/754732770375639040) > [](https://twitter.com/GovOfficeNC/status/754743454534598656) ## Transcript [00:00] [ BLANK_AUDIO ] [00:18] [ NOISE ] [00:37] [ SOUND ] [ MUSIC ] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4409741/baton-rouge-police-barack-obama/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4409741/baton-rouge-police-barack-obama/"},"headline":"President Obama: Killing of Baton Rouge Cops Was 'Work of Cowards'","datePublished":"2016-07-17T19:18:50.000Z","dateModified":"2023-12-13T06:03:24.000Z","description":"\"These attacks are the work of cowards who speak for no one\"","url":"https://time.com/4409741/baton-rouge-police-barack-obama/","keywords":["White House"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9c781109b2e38c41/69889c3b196cf44ed103c6d6/barack-obama-baton-rouge-police-shooting.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Melissa Chan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/melissa-chan/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9c781109b2e38c41/69889c3b196cf44ed103c6d6/barack-obama-baton-rouge-police-shooting.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"<> on July 15, 2016 in Washington, DC.","caption":"President Barack Obama is pictured here on July 15, 2016 in Washington, DC.","creditText":"Mark Wilson—2016 Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/tag/white-house/","name":"White House"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4409741/baton-rouge-police-barack-obama/","name":"President Obama: Killing of Baton Rouge Cops Was 'Work of Cowards'"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"At Least 3 Police Officers Shot and Killed in Baton Rouge","description":"At least three police officers in Baton Rouge, La. were killed and three others were wounded during a shooting Sunday, officials said.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/DC2oG0v6/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2016-07-17T18:53:57.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/DC2oG0v6.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4409741/baton-rouge-police-barack-obama/","duration":"PT1M19S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4409741/baton-rouge-police-barack-obama/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```