Riverside County, Calif. Sheriff Chad Bianco published a video on Friday saying he will not enforce California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s latest lockdown orders that will devastate local hospitals, businesses, schools, and civil liberties.
“These closures and stay-at-home orders are flat-out ridiculous,” he added. “The metrics used for closures are unbelievably faulty and are not representative of true numbers, and are disastrous for Riverside County.”
Bianco said his police department will not be coerced into threatening the livelihoods, safety, and security of local residents. Instead, they will trust local citizens to protect themselves and others with “common-sense” precautions.
“He is expecting us to arrest anyone violating these orders, cite them and take their money, close their businesses, make them stay in their homes, and take away their civil liberties, or he will punish all of us,” Bianco said. “While the governor’s office and the state has threatened action against violators, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department will not be blackmailed, bullied, or used as muscle against Riverside County residents in the enforcement of the governor’s orders.”
Bianco highlighted Newsom’s hypocrisy in constantly refusing to follow the same rules he is inflicting on Californians, as well as his threat to withhold funds from localities that don’t obey him while doing exactly the same thing to the federal government regarding enforcing immigration laws.
(h/t The Federalist)