Trump's Brutality Speech Makes Police Work Harder: Montgomery Police Chief

GAITHERSBURG, MD — The seeming endorsement of police brutality by President Donald Trump last week during a speech on eradicating the MS-13 gang has made the job of being a police officer all the more difficult, says Montgomery County Police Chief Thomas Manger. While the county is also battling the deadly gang violence, Manger said in a letter to the editor published in The Washington Post that he was "appalled" by the president's remarks, which violate the Constitution and the public trust.

Several local New York officers could be seen smiling and clapping behind Trump as he urged police officers to be rough with those in police custody. "And when you see these towns and when you see these thugs being thrown into the back of a paddy wagon -- you just see them thrown in, rough — I said, please don’t be too nice," Trump said.

The crowd laughed. Manger wrote that he hoped the applause and smiles from the local police during the president's speech were because they felt an "awkward duty to laugh at Mr. Trump’s inappropriate comments."

Referring to the police practice of guiding a suspect's head as they are placed in a patrol car, the president said, "Like when you guys put somebody in the car and you're protecting their head, you know, the way you put their hand over? Like, don’t hit their head and they've just killed somebody — don't hit their head. I said, 'You can take the hand away, okay?'" Trump said.

Chief Manger wrote in part:

"Our job got tougher last Friday. As a cop for the past 40 years, I was appalled when I heard President Trump condone injuring an individual in police custody. This violates the Constitution, department policy and the public trust. While any elected official can give his or her views on how the police should do their jobs, it is the actions of police officers that speak directly to who we are. Applause from police for those remarks confirmed to those who don’t like or trust the police that we give a wink and a nod to excessive force. We don’t."

Read the full letter on the Post website.

Manger told Montgomery Community Media the response to his letter has been overwhelmingly positive, from the public and the department.

“Every police officer I have spoken with since Friday was dismayed at the President’s remarks,” Manger said. “The cops that work in Montgomery County are courageous, they are professional and they are out here doing the job to the best of their ability everyday and I am proud of them and the public needed to hear that.”

Manger is also the president of the Major Cities Chiefs Association.

Image from White House YouTube channel of President Trump speaking at Long Island, NY, event; photo of Chief Thomas Manger from Facebook