Ridge: 'It would be a cold day in hell' if he'd let 'uninvited' federal agents into cities.
'Former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge, the first homeland security secretary, criticized the deployment of federal agents in Portland, Ore., as mayors throughout the country call on the Trump administration to keep agents out of their cities.
The administration has deployed agents with tactical gear to confront protesters in downtown Portland, Ore., and plans to send agents to Democratic-led cities, such as Philadelphia. The administration revealed Monday that it plans to send 150 Homeland Security Investigations special agents to Chicago for 60 days.
"The department was established to protect America from the ever-present threat of global terrorism. It was not established to be the president’s personal militia," Ridge, a Republican, said in an interview with Sirius XM radio. He was alluding to the department's creation after the 9/11 attacks.
Ridge said he would “welcome the opportunity to work with any federal agency to reduce crime or lawlessness in the cities" if he were governor. But "it would be a cold day in hell before I would consent to an uninvited, unilateral intervention into one of my cities," he added, specifically calling out how the federal authorities were unwelcome in Portland.
“And I wish the president would take a more collaborative approach toward fighting this lawlessness than the unilateral approach he’s taken,” he added.'>>>
https://www.post-gazette.com/news/crime-courts/2020/07/22/homeland-security-portland-tom-ridge-philadephia-trump-federal-agents/stories/202007220076?
= new reply since forum marked as read
