ADL: Homeland Security Post For ‘Extremist’ Sheriff Would Be ‘Shameful’

Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke wears the pin of Israel’s National Traffic Police under his sheriff’s badge in an NRA promotional video. Image by youtube

By JTA May 19, 2017

(JTA) — The Anti-Defamation League warned that Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke’s consideration for a senior post at the Department of Homeland Security is “shameful” and “dangerous.”

Clarke, who has said he would “grab Democrats by the throat” and whom ADL said has ties to “two anti-government groups well known for trying to recruit law enforcement officers,” said during an interview Wednesday that he has accepted a position to serve as an assistant secretary in the Department of Homeland Security. The department said in a statement no decision has been made regarding the reported plan to appoint Clarke.

“An individual representing such extremist ideologies should not be given this type of leadership role and we urge the Trump administration not to go forward with this appointment,” ADL CEO Jonathan A. Greenblatt said in a statement Thursday.

According to the ADL, Clarke has ties with the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association and the Oath Keepers – a group that ADL described as “an anti-government right-wing fringe organization” that promotes conspiracy theories.

Clarke, who is African American, used harsh language in condemning the Black Lives Matter protest movement, calling it “black scum.”

An individual “representing such extremist ideologies should not be given this type of leadership role,” Greenblatt wrote.

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