Portland, Oregon city commissioner asked Mayor Ted Wheeler to hand over authority over the police department, accusing him of “endangering our community.”
In a series of statements and Twitter messages, City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty accused the Portland Police Bureau, which Wheeler oversees, of collaborating with the Federal Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in what she described as a “aggressive repression of peaceful protest”. “
In a post, Hardesty refers to federal officials as “the 45’s thug squad,” an apparent reference to President Trump, the nation’s 45th president.
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Hardesty’s comments came Friday and Saturday, as Oregon’s largest city was in its second month of nighttime riots since George Floyd’s May 25 death in police custody in Minneapolis.
In that time, Portland has seen destruction that officials estimated earlier this month has cost local businesses more than $ 23 million.
Violence in the city has included a hammer attack on a federal officer.
In addition, acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf tweeted Friday that federal agents in Portland have been “assaulted with lasers and frozen water bottles” by suspects trying to damage federal property.
The illegality in Portland in recent weeks has drawn criticism on Saturday from US Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who accused Democrats of “facilitating and encouraging” violence there, comparing it to what is seen in war zones in the Middle East.
Cruz’s comments came a day after the US Attorney for Oregon requested an investigation into the roles DHS staff have allegedly played in Portland.
Lawyer Billy Williams and others expressed concern after videos on social media appeared to show unlabeled officers in unidentified vehicles suddenly grabbing protesters from the streets, without appearing to identify themselves or read suspects of their rights to Miranda.
On Friday, Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum sued DHS and the US Marshals Service for the conduct of federal officials in the city.
Looking the other way?
In his comments, Hardesty accused Wheeler of looking the other way as local police work closely with federal authorities to crack down on protesters.
“We know that the president of the Portland Police Association, Daryl Turner, met with [acting] DHS Secretary Chad Wolf, ”Hardesty writes in a post. “We know that the Portland police are collaborating with this federal occupation force.”
Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty. (City of Portland website)
He later tells Wheeler: “We need you to stop denying the violence perpetrated by our own police force and to be clear and unambiguous: Portland police are led from the top so that they never collaborate with the 45 thug squad. , to remove his riot gear, and stop contributing to the violence that was happening before the feds came, and it still continues night after night. “
“I demand action at this time,” Hardesty ends his post. “Mayor Wheeler, if you can’t control the police, give me the Portland Police Office.”
Hardesty currently oversees the Portland Fire and Rescue Department, the Office of Emergency Management and the Office of Emergency Communications, Oregon FOX 12 reported.
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler.
Hardesty’s allegations against Wheeler came despite his claim, in a Twitter message Tuesday, that he wanted federal authorities to leave the city.
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“I said to the Acting Secretary [Wolf] that my greatest immediate concern is the violence that federal agents have brought to our streets in recent days and the life-threatening tactics their agents use, “Wheeler wrote.” We do not need or want your help.
“The best they can do is stay inside your building or leave Portland entirely,” he continued. “Our goal is to end these violent protests quickly and safely. And in the meantime, I asked her to clean up the graffiti at local federal facilities.”
