According to The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, : Milwaukee County Sheriff David A. Clarke Jr. set off alarm bells Friday with a radio spot some view as a call for citizens to arm themselves. In the radio ad, Clarke tells residents personal safety isn’t a spectator sport anymore, and that “I need you in the game.”
Clarke urges listeners to take a firearm safety course and handle a firearm “so you can defend yourself until we get there.”
The spot aired at least once – during the last hour of the Mark Belling show on WISN-AM (1130) on Thursday. Clarke spokeswoman Fran McLaughlin posted it to the department website on Friday. She said she did not know where else or how often the spot would be broadcast, or how much the department spent to air it.
Clarke has served as lightning rod before, most recently when he called for schools to arm teachers after the Newtown, Conn., massacre of 20 children and six adults at an elementary school. News of the sheriff’s gun ad quickly generated feedback.
Jodie Tabak, Mayor Tom Barrett’s spokeswoman, released this statement: