Friday, during an interview that aired on Fox News Channel’s “The Ingraham Angle,” acting Department of Homeland Security Deputy Secretary Ken Cuccinelli weighed in on the civil unrest plaguing several American cities.
Guest host Lisa Boothe asked Cuccinelli why those cities should not have to deal with the consequences given that the elected leadership in those cities was allowing it to happen. He also argued House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) should be held accountable for her “libelous” statements regarding the agents of the entities involved in the effort to protect federal government property.
“You know, I’m this close to agreeing, except we have a federal mission at the Department of Homeland Security, governed by statute,” Cuccinelli replied. “And we’ve also heard people, this isn’t constitutional. And real quick, Lisa, I’d point people to Article I, Section 8 Paragraphs 1, 9 and 18 and the statutes that have been written under it. And one of those statutes charges the Department of Homeland Security with protecting federal properties like this courthouse and Edith Green building there in Portland. So we’re not only within the boundaries of the Constitution, we have a statutory charge, and that’s the mission we’re pursuing there.”
“And when you see such libelous, slanderous comments from people who know better, let’s not kid ourselves,” he continued. “The Speaker of the House knows that she’s using Nazi allusions to refer to correct professional law enforcement officers. If I was a CBP agent, if I was an ICE agent, if I was an FPS agent, I might just sue her for libel.”
Cuccinelli went on to speculate what motivations might be behind those statements made by Pelosi and her ilk.
“One of the sad things right now about the political arena is that the Left views an important part of their base, as people who believe violence is an acceptable way to achieve your goals,” he said. “And we saw Mayor Wheeler go out last night. He is way out there. He’s radical Left, as you said in your introduction. He’s basically turned much of the city over to these violent criminals. And he’s tied the hands of his own police department. I feel bad for them – the Portland Police Bureau. And last night he thought he could go out and appease the mob and control them. And he went out and spoke to them. He was booed. They called for his resignation.”
“The right historical analogy has nothing to do with Germany,” Cuccinelli continued. “It has to do with the Bolsheviks. And last night that mayor was a Menshevik, the socialists who went out and thought they could control that revolution, and the bloodthirsty Bolsheviks came in and killed them all. This mob is out for blood. They are not there to protect the First Amendment or to exercise first amendment rights. We all respect those people. At every night that 75 to 100 people and then 1,000 more come later, and start attacking these buildings and the law enforcement officers protecting them.”
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