Written with contribution from Sheriff David Clarke
There are so many stories lately that are just hilariously emblematic of this bizarre period in history, and flip-flopping pathetic progressive Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler pepper spraying someone who harassed him for not wearing a mask is definitely one of them.
If you’ve been following the Wheeler Saga, long story short is that the Democrat mayor who spent the better part of 2020 trying to please the black-clad leftist insurgents who tried to, among broader general destruction of the city he governs, burn down his own apartment building.
Now (that the general election is over) he’s finally agreed that Antifa thugs need to be dealt with and, naturally, they’re still harassing him.
This time around, however, it’s over his perceived failure to adhere to COVID-19 regulations for Rose City diners.
The Post Millennial got the scoop that, according to a police report, Wheeler was leaving McMenamins Hillsdale Brewery & Public House in Portland around 8 pm on Sunday night with former Mayor Sam Adams who he recently hired to his administration.
A person then “confronted [Wheeler] and accused him of sitting in a restaurant without wearing a mask,” according to the report.
Wheeler and Adams had been eating outdoors, which is allowed in Multnomah County, and Oregon diners are also permitted to remove their masks while eating, as the mayor tried to explain to the man.
The man, who Wheeler described as a middle-aged, white male who he did not recognize, allegedly followed him to his vehicle while filming on his phone.
The police reportedly stated that the mayor told the individual that he was armed with pepper spray (good for the mayor) and to “back off,” but the man refused.
Wheeler claimed that the suspected assailant “had no face mask on and got within a foot or two of my face while he was videoing me. I became imminently concerned for my personal safety, as I had recently been physically accosted in a similar situation. In addition, I was concerned about contracting COVID given that he was right in my face and he was not wearing a face mask.”
Out came the pepper spray, which the PM notes is legal in Oregon but may only be used in certain circumstances.
Wheeler said he then threw a water bottle at the man—considerate—as he was walking away.
Wow, where to start?
First of all, this is the guy who less than a year ago banned his own police officers from using pepper spray to disperse the crowds that he allowed to ravage his city for months on end (and for years on and off).
Yet he himself carries pepper spray to keep his own person safe from irate citizens, himself admitting that he felt compelled to employ it due to the same black bloc thugs he’s much less eager to allow officers to defend themselves against.
Here’s the thing: Wheeler has every right to defend himself from anyone he feels is posing a direct threat to his bodily security or life, same as any other citizen of Portland, Oregon, and the United States.
Wheeler has every right to be firm on Antifa—but he’s decided to fight back so late in the game he’s got a lot to make up for in terms of integrity.
There’s no reason not to wish this dude well, though, since it seems he may have finally found a backbone, and having the stones to pepper spray the proverbial stranger threateningly harassing him over not wearing a mask is exactly the kind of backbone our leaders need right now.
Had Wheeler, who is also police commissioner, possessed this no-nonsense attitude a year ago in countering Antifa, he could have spared residents over 100 nights of riots that are still occurring.
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