Donald Trump has sympathised with police by insisting they are under ‘tremendous pressure’ during his visit to Kenosha, where the shooting of a black man sparked civil unrest.

Jacob Blake was shot seven times in the back on August 23 and has been left paralysed as a result.

The incident was captured on video and after being posted to social media sparked widespread protests across the state.

But Trump, who is pushing a strong law and order campaign ahead of the presidential election in November, showed support for the police when he travelled to the troubled area of Wisconsin.

He said: "These are not acts of peaceful protest, but really domestic terror."

The president then went on to describe police officers as being in a ‘lose-lose’ situation when it came to certain incidents.

He added: "You have people that choke. They are under tremendous pressure. And they may be there for 15 years and have a spotless record and all of a sudden they're faced with a decision.

"They have a quarter of a second to make a decision. And if they make a wrong decision, one way or the other, they're either dead or they're in big trouble.

"And people have to understand that. They choke sometimes."

It is the second time in four months that the shooting of a black man has fuelled protests in America.

Back in May, the death of George Floyd led to widespread protests and riots not only in the US but across the globe, with the Black Lives Matter movement coming to the fore.

Following the shooting of Blake, major sports fixtures in the NBA, MLB and NHL were boycotted in a bid to draw attention to the issue.

According to the polls, Trump is closing the gap on Democratic nominee Joe Biden as they enter the final two months of their election campaigns.

Meanwhile Biden, who at one stage held an eight point lead over his Republican counterpart, accused Trump of fuelling the racial divide in the United States.

Speaking before Trump’s visit to Kenosha on Tuesday, he said: "Fires are burning and we have a president who fans the flames rather than fighting the flames."

Americans will head to the ballot box on November 3 to determine their president for the next four years.