Washington sheriff backs deputy who said cops need military hardware to fight right-wing extremists

[DonViejo]

SCOTT KAUFMAN
18 DEC 2014 AT 10:21 ET

Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich tried to grapple with the fallout after one of his deputies said something in a video that was picked up and became a viral hit at InfoWars, the website of conspiracy enthusiast Alex Jones. In the video clip, the deputy said military-grade equipment was necessary because of gun-hoarding “constitutionalists” who have made police work dangerous.

The woman interviewing the deputy asked about the need for a Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle in America, to which the deputy replied, “We’ve got a lot of constitutionalists and a lot of people that stockpile weapons, lots of ammunition. They have weapons here locally.”

The InfoWars website jumped on that quote as evidence that there’s a conspiracy by the country’s law enforcement agencies to target Americans who hold conservative views. “Constitutionalist” is how many on the far right — including the majority of InfoWars’ audience — describe themselves. However, as Sheriff Knezovich noted, “people need to understand that there are people who carry that title who have killed police officers.”

As the Sheriff said in his YouTube response (below) to the InfoWars video, his deputy was not referring generally to those who support the Constitution, but to self-described “constitutionalists” like Jerad and Amanda Miller.

more
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/12/washington-sheriff-backs-deputy-who-said-cops-need-military-hardware-to-fight-right-wing-extremists/

[nc4bo]

1. I'm sure everyone involved in the Bundy ranch incidents

Would agree.

The Feds and the local l eos really showed 'em how to respond to RW ding dongs.

[rogerashton]

2. Are we drifting toward

a civil war among conservatives?

[KingCharlemagne]

4. Knight of the Long Knives, v. 2.0 - nt

[frylock]

3. yeah, i'd be more inclined to believe that if they actually used them against the RWNJs..

but I don't recall seeing MRAPs at the Bundy Ranch.

[GreatGazoo]

5. and what if the cops ARE the RW extremists ??

Like this guy who used only government issued guns in his video rants. To be clear: he grabbed government guns and ammo to use in his own rant videos about how the government might grab privately owned guns.

NSFW

He was later fired for misuse of public assets.

[dixiegrrrrl]

6. Just to be clear...

Spokane is in Eastern Washington, that side of the state has always been very conservative, along with Idaho.
We longhaired hippy freaks stayed pretty much on the Western side of the state.
There's a mountain range between the 2 sides, some say it is not high enough.

[AtheistCrusader]

7. Yep.

[dixiegrrrrl]

10. LOL!

Gotta send that to my sons, they still live up there.

[dilby]

8. Well let's be honest they use the extremists as an excuse on why they need Military gear.

But we all know they never intend to use it on the extremists, it's way funner to use it on unarmed black children.

[sendero]

9. When is THAT going to happen..

... because I've never seen cops fight right wing extremists.

[Dawson Leery]

11. I will believe it when I see it.

The law enforcement machinery time and time again chooses not to see right wing extremists as being any sort of threat(most notably Timmy McVeigh), yet are ready to use the full force of their power against the political left and racial minorities.

[KT2000]

12. they did have the

bombing at the Martin Luther King parade and since it is the conservative side of the state, that is where their experiences have been - with RW lunatics.