South Dakota congressional leaders call death of George Floyd a crime

South Dakota's congressional delegation says George Floyd's death in the custody of Minneapolis police last week was murder. 

U.S. Sen. John Thune spoke out with a statement and a Senate floor speech against Floyd's death on Tuesday, but he's also walked the line in his comments this week about President Donald Trump's actions about Floyd's death and the subsequent protests. 

Everyone is united in "saying the murder of George Floyd was heartbreaking and unacceptable," Thune said in a statement on Tuesday. "We cannot close our eyes to the injustice that's around us." 

The first step should be ensuring that "perpetrators of crimes" such as Floyd's death are brought to justice, he said. 

Thune said he hears the peaceful protesters. 

"We need to listen to them with humility, with compassion and with respect," he said. 

However, violence, property damage and looting needs to be "strongly condemned," he said. 

Trump had peaceful protesters pushed out on Monday to allow him to walk to a church for a photo holding a Bible in front of the church. Thune said on PBS News Hour on Tuesday night that the situation is "in the eye of the beholder." 

"Trump supporters are going to say that he was showing strength and evidencing his commitment to faith and principle. Obviously his detractors will say it's a photo op," he said. 

The White House made the decision to take a photo at the church on Monday and Trump's "tactics and ways of communicating are certainly unconventional and in many ways, unorthodox," Thune said. When asked if he was comfortable with peaceful protesters being forcibly removed, Thune said peaceful protesters should be allowed and encouraged to peacefully protest.

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Thune has also said in recent days that Trump needs to be projecting a calm tone and an understanding of people's frustrations, anger and anxiety right now. Thune has told media outlets this week that Trump has projected that tone "at times" and Trump's tweets about the situation are "not helpful."

U.S. Mike Rounds tweeted that on Sunday that he was "saddened and angered" by Floyd's death. 

"Watching the video displaying such reckless, unwarranted brutality at the hands of law enforcement made me sick to my stomach. Those responsible should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," Rounds tweeted. 

It's important to speak out when deaths such as Floyd's occur, but Rounds cautioned against violence and rioting during protests. The violence that has happened since Floyd's death doesn't represent the communities or the people who call them home, but is "in many cases radical outsiders trying to further divide us. We cannot let this happen," Rounds tweeted. 

U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson said in a statement on Wednesday that Floyd's death was "unacceptable," as are violence and racism. 

"Trampling on the rights of journalists, protesters, property owners and others is unacceptable. Using language that divides, rather than unites, is unacceptable. Ignoring the problem is unacceptable," Johnson said. 

Thousands of acts of injustice occur in every state every day and recognizing them, processing them and eliminating them will take "a tremendous amount of work," Johnson said. He said he's taken real and tangible steps to do that, but there's more work for him to do.

"There is a role for all of us, myself included, in that labor. Progress takes years to build, it will be uncomfortable and there will be setbacks," he said.