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Democrats on Sunday accused President Donald Trump of trying to inflame racial tensions and incite violence to benefit his campaign as he praised supporters who clashed with protesters in Portland, Oregon, where one man died overnight, and announced he will travel to Kenosha, Wisconsin, amid anger over the shooting of another Black man by police.

Mr. Trump unleashed a flurry of tweets and retweets the day after a man聽identified as a supporter聽of a right-wing group was聽shot and killed聽in Portland, where a large caravan of Trump supporters and Black Lives Matter protesters clashed in the city's streets. Mr. Trump praised the caravan participants as 鈥淕REAT PATRIOTS!鈥� and retweeted what appeared to be the dead man's name along with a message to 鈥淩est in peace.鈥�

Mr. Trump also retweeted those who blamed the city鈥檚 Democratic mayor for the death.

鈥淭he people of Portland, like all other cities & parts of our great Country, want Law & Order," Mr. Trump later tweeted. "The Radical Left Democrat Mayors, like the dummy running Portland, or the guy right now in his basement unwilling to lead or even speak out against crime, will never be able to do it!鈥�

Mr. Trump has throughout the summer cast American cities as under siege by violence and lawlessness, despite the fact that most of the demonstrations against racial injustice have been largely peaceful. With about nine weeks until Election Day, some of his advisers see an aggressive 鈥渓aw and order鈥� message as the best way for the president to turn voters against his Democratic rival, Joe Biden, and regain the support of suburban voters, particularly women, who have abandoned him. But Democrats accuse Mr. Trump of rooting for unrest and trying to stoke further violence for political gain instead of seeking to ratchet down tensions.

鈥淗e may think that war in our streets is good for his reelection chances, but that is not presidential leadership 鈥� or even basic human compassion,鈥� Mr. Biden said in a statement responding to the shooting, in which he 鈥渦nequivocally鈥� condemned violence on all side, while accusing Mr. Trump of 鈥渞ecklessly encouraging" it.

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler, a Democrat, blamed Mr. Trump for the tensions.

鈥淒o you seriously wonder, Mr. President, why this is the first time in decades that America has seen this level of violence?鈥� he asked at a televised news conference. 鈥淚t鈥檚 you who have created the hate and the division.鈥�

Mr. Trump, who appeared to be watching, responded with real-time tweets labeling Wheeler a 鈥渨acky Radical Left Do Nothing Democrat."

After a reporter told Mr. Wheeler about the tweet, the mayor shot back, 鈥淚鈥檇 appreciate that the president support us or stay the hell out of the way."

Late Sunday Oregon Gov. Kate Brown released details of a plan to address the violence in Portland while protecting free speech. She said the district attorney鈥檚 office in Multnomah County, which includes Portland, will prosecute serious criminal offenses and the sheriff鈥檚 office will work with other agencies to hold people arrested for violent behavior and ensure there is adequate jail space.

Also, Ms. Brown said Oregon State Police will return to Portland to help local police, and nearby law enforcement agencies will also be asked to assist.

鈥淲e all must come together 鈥� elected officials, community leaders, all of us 鈥� to stop the cycle of violence,鈥� the Democrat said in a statement.

Mr. Trump has cast the upcoming election as clash between 鈥渓aw and order鈥� and anarchy, and he has denounced protesters as 鈥渢hugs鈥� while sharply defending police. That theme was front-and-center at last week鈥檚 Republican National Convention, which used recent protest footage to paint a foreboding and violent picture of the future if Mr. Biden denies Mr. Trump a second term.

Mr. Trump is expected to continue to hit that theme when he travels Tuesday to Kenosha, Wisconsin, where tensions are still raw after police shot Jacob Blake, a Black man, in the back seven times, leaving him paralyzed. The shooting has ignited new demonstrations against racial injustice and police brutality months after George Floyd鈥檚 death at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer touched off a wider reckoning on race.

Mr. Trump will be meeting with law enforcement officers and 鈥渟urveying鈥� the damage in the city, where businesses have been vandalized and some buildings burned during demonstrations, White House spokesman Judd Deere announced.

But Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, asked Mr. Trump to reconsider in a letter Sunday.

鈥淚, along with other community leaders who have reached out, are concerned about what your presence will mean for Kenosha and our state. I am concerned your presence will only hinder our healing. I am concerned your presence will only delay our work to overcome division and move forward together,鈥� Mr. Evers wrote in the letter, obtained by The Associated Press.

Earlier Sunday, Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, also expressed concerns about the visit. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know how, given any of the previous statements that the president made, that he intends to come here to be helpful. And we absolutely don鈥檛 need that right now,鈥� Mr. Barnes said in an interview with CNN.

Rep. Karen Bass, a California Democrat who leads the Congressional Black Caucus, said Mr. Trump is 鈥渄oing everything he can to fan the flames.鈥�

"I think his visit has one purpose, and one purpose only. And that is to agitate things and to make things worse," Ms. Bass said Sunday on CNN's 鈥淪tate of the Union." "It is clear his campaign is all about law and order. It is a throwback to the past. And he鈥檚 going to do everything to disrupt law and order in this time period."

Mr. Deere responded to the critics saying, 鈥淭he only people to blame for the violence and riots in our streets are liberal politicians and their incompetent policies that have failed to get control of these destructive situations."

It took days for Mr. Trump to weigh in on Mr. Blake's shooting, which was captured on cellphone video, and even then he had little to say.

鈥淲ell, I'm looking into it very strongly. I'll be getting reports,鈥� he said in an聽. 鈥淚t was not a good sight. I didn't like the sight of it, certainly, and I think most people would agree with that.鈥�

Mr. Trump offered similar words 鈥� 鈥淲e鈥檙e looking at it very, very carefully鈥� 鈥� when asked Saturday about Kyle Rittenhouse, the white 17-year-old who has been charged with fatally shooting two protesters and wounding a third Tuesday after he traveled to Kenosha, apparently to defend the city from protesters. Attorneys representing Mr. Rittenhouse, who was seen walking with an assault-style rifle, have said he acted in self-defense.

But Mr. Trump on Sunday appeared to lend support to the teenager when he聽聽of a series of messages that began, 鈥淜yle Rittenhouse is a good example of why I decided to vote for Trump.鈥�

The circumstances of Saturday night鈥檚 shooting in Portland聽Video from the city聽shows sporadic fighting between the groups, with Trump supporters firing paintball pellets at opponents and using bear spray as counterprotesters threw rocks and other objects at the 600-car Trump caravan.

About 15 minutes after the caravan left the city, a supporter of the right-wing group Patriot Prayer was fatally shot.

Patriot Prayer members have frequently clashed with protesters in Portland in the past, its founder, Joey Gibson, said Sunday. He identified the shooting victim as Aaron 鈥淛ay鈥� Danielson and called him a 鈥済ood friend,鈥� but provided no details. Mr. Danielson apparently also went by the name Jay Bishop, according to Patriot Prayer鈥檚 Facebook page.

Mr. Trump retweeted the victim鈥檚 name and wrote, 鈥淩est in peace Jay!鈥�

Police have released little information and Chief Chuck Lovell said Sunday that investigators are still gathering evidence, including surveillance video from area businesses. Earlier Sunday, the agency released a plea for any information related to the killing, including videos, photos, or eyewitness accounts.

Patriot Prayer is based in Washington state and was founded in 2016. Since early 2017, its supporters have been periodically coming to Portland to hold rallies for Mr. Trump, ratcheting up tensions in the liberal city long before the national outrage over Mr. Floyd's death sparked more than three months of protests here.

Portland has seen nearly 100 consecutive nights of Black Lives Matter protests and many have ended with vandalism to federal and city property, including police precincts, a county jail, the federal courthouse, and City Hall. In July, Mr. Trump sent more than 100 federal agents from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to safeguard federal property 鈥� a move that instead reinvigorated the protests.

Thousands of people clashed with the federal agents each night for two weeks, turning a two-block area of the city into what felt like a war zone as agents lobbed tear gas canisters and pepper spray at the crowds and some protesters tossed fireworks at the agents and shined lasers in their eyes.

Those agents withdrew July 31 but smaller nightly protests have continued in pockets of the city. More than 600 people have been arrested since late May.

On Sunday, Portland authorities urged people to stay away from the downtown as they try to de-escalate tensions and braced for what promised to be another night of violence.聽

Mr. Trump earlier Sunday appeared to be encouraging his supporters to move into Portland in the wake of the shooting. After the shooting, the president shared a video of his supporters driving into Portland and called those in Saturday's caravan 鈥淕REAT PATRIOTS!鈥�

Mayor Wheeler begged those who wanted to come to Portland to 鈥渟eek retribution鈥� to stay away.

鈥淚f you鈥檙e from out of town and you鈥檙e reading something on social media 鈥� if you鈥檙e reading any facts on social media 鈥� they鈥檙e probably wrong because we don鈥檛 have all the facts yet,鈥� Mr. Wheeler said. 鈥淭hey are still assembling the facts. This is not the time to get hotheaded because you read something on Twitter that some guy made up in his mother鈥檚 basement.鈥�

The White House and its allies, meanwhile, continued to blame local leaders for allowing the protests to rage on night after night.

鈥淲hen you encourage the disdain for the police, you encourage criminals. When you do little or nothing to stop rioting, you encourage anarchy. So when you are encouraging criminals and anarchy, people鈥檚 lives are lost,鈥� Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin said on CNN鈥檚 鈥淪tate of the Union."

鈥淚鈥檓 asking Portland officials, so that鈥檚 the mayor, that鈥檚 the governor and that鈥檚 local law enforcement, to do their job to address any violent activity that is occurring in their streets,鈥� Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf told CBS鈥� 鈥淔ace the Nation.鈥�

Mr. Wolf said the federal government was prepared to send agents to Portland and other cities to protect federal buildings and assist police.

Mr. Lovell and Mr. Wheeler said they had no plans to request National Guard troops but the city is seeking assistance from the sheriff鈥檚 department and Oregon State Police.

Mr. Wheeler, who is running for a second term, also rejected a call for his resignation made Sunday by a coalition of civil rights and protest groups. He has come under fire from some in Portland for criticizing violent demonstrators and saying they were helping Mr. Trump with his reelection campaign.

The mayor, who is also the police commissioner, has also been faulted for letting Portland police use tear gas on multiple occasions and has been nicknamed 鈥淭ear Gas Teddy" by some protesters.

This story was reported by The Associated Press. AP writers Gillian Flaccus in Portland, Oregon; Scott Bauer in Madison, Wisconsin; and Laurie Kellman and Will Weissert contributed to this report.

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