The deputy sheriff in a Trump mask says to be very afraid. He’s wrong, very wrong
You ever heard of Kevin Mickelson? Oh, he’s a riot. He’s the president of the Sacramento County Deputy Sheriff’s Association and he’s the guy who sent you a piece of political trash in the mail last week.
Remember? It was a glossy mailer that said: “Public Safety at Risk!” It said: “Cuts to Deputies have a Devastating Impact on Your Safety!”
And: “Now is the time for County Supervisors to stand up and invest in your family’s safety by refusing any more cuts.”
As it happens, county supervisors finalize the county’s budget Wednesday. The county is in a big money crunch because of COVID-19 and because of the millions of dollars the county pays to cover lawsuits against the department run by Sheriff Scott Jones.
But here is the punchline: The five-member board does not have three votes to cut the sheriff’s budget. We have had no hint that a majority of the board would cast votes to cut Jones’ budget – even a little bit.
In fact, this year’s budget includes a new toy for Jones – one of those armored Bearcat vehicles that look military and are loved by law enforcement. They are perfect for scaring civilians and keeping people of color in line.. The new Bearcat costs $500,000.
Now, to be fair, Jones’ Bearcat and the cost to maintain it won’t come out of county general funds. But he will get it and, by all accounts, his budget will not be cut. It’s not happening. “Defunding” law enforcement may be happening in other counties, but not in Sacramento.
No ‘defunding’
So why would Mickelson and the DSA send out a mailer trying to scare citizens into believing the supervisors were going to “defund” Jones’ department when it’s not going to happen at all?
It sounds crazy, right? It is crazy in some respects, but it all adds up.
Mickelson absolutely loves Donald Trump. How much? Recently, he took a selfie in a face mask adorned with Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign logo and posted it on social media.
Funny, huh?
I called his personal phone number to ask him about it but never heard back.
Hours after I reached out to him, Mickelson posted this on Facebook: “And while I’m in the mood, thanks to whomever sent a picture of me in my Trump 2020 mask to the Sacramento Bee. Can you believe that a reporter called me today to discuss....That’s news???? No wonder they are going bankrupt. Can’t wait to read that story.”
Well, actually Mr. Mickelson, we’ve emerged from bankruptcy. We have new owners. We’re still here.
Hope you enjoy this “story” because it says a lot about who you are and why you would abuse your badge, your position, and your members to act more like a cheap, divisive politician than a law enforcement officer sworn to protect and serve.
It all makes sense. I get emails from DonaldTrump.com that say “The Left hates you.”
Sacramento gets mailers from Mickelson saying you are in danger, write your supervisors and tell them not to cut Jones’ budget.
Racist euphemisms
The president sowing racial and political animus to boost political fortunes is unacceptable. The same holds for law enforcement stoking fear and using Trump tactics to sow division in a county that overwhelmingly voted against Trump in 2016.
My favorite line from Mickelson’s mailer: ““Tax-paying, law abiding residents should not have to shoulder the risk of becoming crime victims to pacify a vocal minority of riotous, looting thugs who are bent on shattering public peace.”
That line is pure Trump. It employs racist euphemisms that like-minded bigots can understand. It demeans people of color and others who took to the streets to protest the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis Police, as people did all over the world.
We are in a crisis in this country triggered by police brutality. And instead of being introspective or giving a damn about the people they serve, cops like Mickelson dig in their heels.
And they use dehumanizing language to dismiss citizens genuinely alarmed and sick to their souls over the violence inflicted on citizens by law enforcement.
He won’t talk to me, but Mickelson is telling on himself. So is Jones.
During recent demonstrations in downtown Sacramento, Jones wanted to escalate the response to an “insurrection.” He wanted to bring in the National Guard, but thankfully, Sacramento Police Chief Daniel Hahn did not.
“So far, no one in Sacramento has been killed or seriously injured. No buildings have burned,” Hahn wrote in an opinion piece for The Bee. “There’s no smell of teargas wafting across our city, no ‘rubber bullets’ have taken out eyes. On balance this is a good outcome.”
In an interview with KCRA, Hahn said: “Sheriff Jones has a responsibility to run his department, I have a responsibility to run mine. This is my city. The city I’ve lived every single day of my life in. A city that I’ve spent over 30 years in this police department in. And I will continue to do my responsibility.”
In his opinion piece, Hahn called out Mickelson.
“Fellow law enforcement leaders who publicly second-guess my response make my job, and the job my brave officers do, even harder,” he said. “It also weakens the ties that bind us and the cooperation necessary to respond together to emergencies across our region.
“Got a problem with my actions? Pick up the phone and call me. Let’s talk about it.”
Don’t hold your breath, Chief. Mickelson may represent 1,500 men and women in what is the largest law enforcement department in Sacramento County. The DSA may like to tout “diversity” within its ranks.
But these leaders don’t lead, they scare. Like Trump, Mickelson is fully invested in gaslighting, dividing and scaring people even though that scary thing he claims is going to happen is not going to happen at all.
