This Trumpy Long Island Politician Plans to Deputize Armed Civilians
A Republican politician on Long Island—who just last week held an umbrella over former President Donald Trump’s head at the wake for a slain New York City police officer—has come under fire over a controversial plan to organize what critics contend is essentially a “personal militia.”
“This is open season to kill,” Barbara Powell, the president of Hempstead’s NAACP branch, declared on Tuesday at a rally protesting Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman’s plan, which involves the creation of a list of deputized, armed civilians that can be deployed during emergencies.
The plan has been slammed by residents and Democratic legislators as potentially dangerous and a threat to local police authority.