Held its annual conference in st. Louis, missouri in january. Well hear from milwaukee sheriff david clark but First Executive director donna hearn and Peggy Hubbard. [applause] donna let me just say that what you see up here isnt the coalition. Its just the lady that gets to be the glue, the in betweens, the resonating sound boards of an awful lot of folks like you who care about our country, who have been with us, many of you, for many years. Its been our pleasure to be here. To be in the fight for the family, for our faith, and for our freedom. And we just want to thank each of you because we can have all these discussions we want with the seven of us, and youall represent america. We wouldnt do it. So thank youall for coming. Thank you. [applause] im delighted that tim filled you in on my friend, mason, because i was going to ask the question, how many of you knew who huey newton was . Theres a few of you. He was the founder of the black panther organization, and mason got the opportunity to study under his brother. So mason got the full dose when he was out on the west left coast, that goldwater was accused of wanting to sever. Tonight were excited to welcome two people to the podium tonight, one is just a little extra special hometown touch. Im going to introduce the next two speakers, the first ones only going to take about seven minutes. And the reason were watching our time is that were very fortunate tonight to be having cspan with us taping this. Were really excited and thank you, cspan, for being here, because we think this message should go across the country. [applause] before i do, that id like to ask anybody who is a first responder, married to, married into a family, have relatives are military, both retired and active, would you stand so that we can thank you, please. I know theres some of you here. [applause] thank you. The theme, of course, of our conference is not just exposing and talking about the progressives and pushing back against the progressives that want to take away this beautiful country of ours, but tonight were starting with really the bedrock of what is it that keeps america safe and free and why is it important that we understand the role of those who are first responders, why is it important that we support them . Why is it important that we understand the rule of law . As we go into tomorrow, why is it important that we understand the threats to those particular important precepts of america that make us so important . So tonight were going to focus on first of all welcome to the microphone, Peggy Hubbard, who is a local area, shes in the east part of the st. Louis region, and youll see in your bios, over and over again tomorrow well tell you, the bios tell you all about them. Were not going to take the time to tell you because we have outstanding speakers from around the world, literally. We have three people, one from peru, two from ireland who are joining us in this conference, and were just blessed to have their presence. But tonight i want to open with peggy to let her give you just a snapshot of why its important that we speak out and why somebody who has been so involved with Law Enforcement side of things speaks out and peggy has been a wonderful spokesman. Many of you have seen her on the tvs also her youtube. The second speaker i dont need to introduce the sheriff. As many of you have heard our ads, the sheriff is coming to town. [applause] donna were delighted to have him with us. When we finish well have a few q as, i will come back up here and if you have a question, it is a question not a commentary. I know you have all got stories. I know you do. Wed love to hear them. But not tonight. If you would ask a question and i will challenge you, you have to say it in one breath. Ne breath. So if you got a question, practice it right now. Because afterwards im pretty brutal. I can shut you we have the microphone in our hand so well shut you up. Without any further ado, id like to ask peggy where are you . Ight here. If peggy would come up and in a few minutes followed by the sheriff. [applause] peggy how about that lection . Well, donna put me in a restraint here. So im going to make it quick and fast and good. The only way peggy can do it. I get asked time and time again why did you speak out . My answer is why not speak out . [applause] i spoke out because a little girl, so much hope and promise, sitting on her mothers bed, bullet to the chest, only thing she was looking forward to is the third day of school. And it was taken away from her. While it was taken away from her, a drug dealer was killed at the same time. There was no mention of jameela. There was no mention of her promise. There was no mention, period. But my neighborhood that day burned. So i spoke out. When you have over 4,000 people shot in the city of chicago and over 490 people are dead and your mayor offers you a sanctuary city for illegals while your citizens get body bags, i speak out. [applause] i have been called a con, sellout, uncle tom. There is one name they can never call peggy, and peggy is not a coward, and she will not be silenced. [applause] hey called phyllis arrogant, assertive, a bitch. They called her everything, but you know what, she spoke out. She never backed down from a fight. When she was wrong, she said she was wrong. When she was right, she stood on her morals and her principles. I hope to be an inspiration for people to step out and speak out. N july 3, my husband, whos in Law Enforcement here in st. Louis, was shot twice on a traffic stop. Hes still here. Charlie. Over there. [applause] he survived. He took two bullets. [applause] when that happened i spoke out. When we have veterans that are laying on the floor in veterans ospitals, in v. A. Hospitals, and their only crime and unishment was because they served, without any dignity, without any fault, we dont pay enough respect for these men and women that support us, defend us and defend our flag and constitution and for that i speak out. [applause] when a son is killed in chicago just because he is a son of a drug dealer and a vendetta needs to be paid and that child is that casualty of that vendetta, i speak out. No child should be afraid to go outside and play. No child should have to wonder whether or not theyre going to get a bullet through the window. O child should be forgotten, and it seems like to me our past administration has forgotten all about that. We say black lives matter. How about all lives matter . How about Blue Lives Matter . How about white lives matter . How about italian lives matter . We all matter. Theres no disqualifier and no representation of what matters more than life, and we forgot all about that. Our administration that left us, they left us with crime. They left us with a lack of respect for Police Officers, first responders, veterans. When they can take our flag and wipe their behinds with the flag that so many men and women that died for defending, i speak out. And my question to everyone in this room is, why arent all of us speaking out . Because this is our country, this is our faith, this is our promise. And for us to sit back and do nothing, like the great dr. Martin luther king said, and he said in this statement, and it s true, speaking out is very important and he said, once our lives end the day we become silent the things that matter. So why arent we all speaking out . That is the promise that dr. King, gandhi, rosa parks, medgar evers, spoke about. Sheriff clarke, mason weaver, my grandfather who walked across the pettus bridge to be met with the Police Officers billy club and spent the night in jail with a concussion, he spoke out. It is our duty. It is our constitutional right to speak out for all, not just a few, not just the poor, not just the rich. Its called being human. We speak out. I speak out so i leave you with this tonight. When you go back to your communities, ask yourselves, things are as bad as they are in our country, as we watch our cities burn, as our president did nothing about it, as our Police Officers died and our president did nothing about it, why havent we all spoken out . Speak out. Stand up. Be heard. Be seen because we cannot win this fight, ladies and gentlemen, alone. We need each and every one of you to speak out. Ive been called every name possible, but you know what, Peggy Hubbard doesnt cut and run. Peggy hubbard fights. I will tell you tonight, i will continue to speak out. Thank you. [applause] sheriff clarke good evening. What a pleasure it is to be here and i really mean that from the bottom of my heart. I get a chance now to visit a lot of places in this great country of ours. Ive met a lot of great people. A lot of great americans and it is has renewed my hope over the last 18 months that we could rise up and take this country back, that it was going to take a movement, a movement of great americans. Because i believed in its people. A couple of selfpromotion items here. First of all, you can follow me on twitter sheriffclarke, make sure you put the e on there. I dont know where it will take you if you dont. [laughter] i do a blog and it is at the peoples sheriff patheos. Com. It may be. Org. I have a book coming out in march, my first book. It is titled cop under fire with the subtitle beyond the hashtags of race, crime and politics for better america. If you heard me spoke on tv and many of you have, you know my style. I give you things unvarnished. I give you the gods honest truth no matter how ugly it is. And i think you will find that book to be the same way. It is not just the recitation of everything thats wrong with america but it offers a path forward so you can order it, preorder it now on amazon. Com. I hear barnes and noble you can get it through them too. But it kind of debuted at number 39 on the amazon top 100 so i was very proud of for my first book. [applause] and it was trending at number one in several categories. When was politics and another category. So keep that in mind as well. Good evening and thank you for the opportunity to join you here tonight in our great gateway city and for allowing me a few brief moments to state my view which is backed by 38 years of experience from the ground up level in major urban policing. Ive taken a few public stances that some have called brave, but i just call common sense. Ive spoken in support of the Second Amendment, the right to selfdefense as a nonnegotiatable birthright of every american. I have spoken in support and defense of the character of the American Police officer. As a result ive been overwhelmed with offers to speak at events such as this one here this evening. Nothing in our american life, ladies and gentlemen, means more to me than our constitution. It is the great founding document that establishes the rule of law in this great country. I carry one with me. I have one everywhere i go. I keep some in my vehicle. I keep some in my home, at my desk, in my backpack that i travel with. I always have one handy. Why . Because i took an oath to defend this when i was sworn in as sheriff. I said i will defend the constitution of the United States. And this reminds me of the oath that i took. One of the other reasons that this means so much to me is because it was this document that freed my ancestors from the bonds of slavery. It wasnt the United StatesSupreme Court. It was the 13th amendment of the constitution and the 14th amendment as well. So it guides my actions on a daily basis. It reminds me of why i hold the office that i do and it reminds me why i was placed here by the elected of milwaukee county, to guard their freedoms. Very few topics in our human discourse spark as much emotion, passion or vilification as the subject of guns in america. Ask yourselves why. Why is the Second Amendment treated like the bastard child of the bill of rights . Treated that way by academia, the liberal Mainstream Media and liberals in the political establishment. You see, for too long in washington, d. C. , the individual hasnt mattered. If youre not part of a special Interest Group or if you dont have a powerful lobby behind you, you cant get a seat at the table to participate in important discussions. But i took an oath to uphold and defend the constitution, and the constitution, ladies and gentlemen, does not come a la carte. Its allinclusive. [applause] it grants rights to the citizens, inalienable rights endowed by the creator, not granted by inclusion in some group or cause. And when we start down the road of picking apart the constitution to fit a certain political agenda, my friends, we are headed toward a very dark place in government called tyranny. Whats interesting is that many of these attacks on the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms are pretty recent phenomena. For most of our nearly 240year history as a constitutional republic, the right to keep and bear arms wasnt seriously questioned. It was only in the last 30, 40 years, that this inalienable right has been challenged. In 1775, here in the new world, a group of renegades we called the Founding Fathers understood the threat posed by a strong centralized government. So they created this idea of selfrule around a document that strictly limits the power of government. One that places the power with the people, the individual and the states. You see, they understood that government tyranny was a natural output of government so they included safeguards. They knew that only an armed citizenry could keep government in check. Folks, it is the historical truism that in the 20th century, nazi germanys use of firearms registration laws to confiscate weapons from jews rendered them defenseless from attacks. And then theres the issue of the right of the people to keep and bear arms for selfdefense. Lets visit the issue of slavery that included my ancestors. One of the hallmarks of slavery was that it was illegal to arm slaves or for slaves to possess weapons. Why . So that slaves could not defend themselves during escapes or against mob violence and lynchings. The 13th amendment only freed the slaves on paper. Only the ratification of the 14th amendment, ordering that the Second Amendment applied to the states as well, allowed newly freed slaves to arm themselves and thus defend themselves against ongoing mob violence, kidnapping and lynching. My ancestors fought hard and shed blood for the right to keep and bear arms for selfdefense. I am not going to cede that right back to the federal government. [applause] especially when Todays Society confronts us with increasing threats from criminal behavior as well. A gun in the hands of a lawabiding citizen is not a threat to society. It is a threat to the criminal element. Ive also spoken at some length in support and defense of the character of the American Police officer. Since the events that led to riots in ferguson, missouri, policing in our nation has become scrutinized nationally and incessantly. It fills our airwaves. And police use of force should be scrutinized, locally, that is. It should be examined in terms of factual data and circumstances that led to the police action, not from an Emotional Foundation of false narratives and catchy slogans, hashtag slogans like hands up, dont shoot, or no justice no peace, or black lives matter. Racial disparities in american policing are attributable only to differences in offending. Now, that conclusion might be ugly to some, but it is what the data and the Research Show us. Its true of traffic stop patterns. It is true of arrest and incarceration data and its true for the police use of force data. You see, participation rates in Violent Crime explain the disparity of why so many are arrested, prosecuted and convicted in a system of justice renowned the world over for protecting the right of the accused and the provision of individual due process. We grant that here in the United States. And this reality is not the result of a discriminatory criminal Justice System and the push of the past four years for greater federal control of policing. The move for Greater Washington power over one of the few elements of local government, ladies and gentlemen, that truly works in this society is just plain wrong. Our Police Agencies are that thin line of order and chaos. Without them our community would evolve into one night we saw not too long ago in the great city of baltimore, in the city of charlotte, north carolina, and what was reenacted this past summer in the only city i have ever called home, milwaukee, wisconsin. We shouldnt undertake to reform american policing lightly. In fact, we shouldnt do it at all. It is local Law Enforcement that always been on the front lines in preventing and controlling crime and seeking just punishment for those guilty of unlawful behavior. We surely do not need another level of uninformed, bias bureaucracy at the federal level, confusing our best efforts towards justice. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, the people that want to transform this profession have never done our work, not even for one day. You see, they get to make decisions over coffee looking at video screens that move the image frame by frame like an nfl replay official. We make decisions under the stressors of fear and adrenaline. We make decisions after highspeed pursuits through residential neighborhoods and foot pursuits over fences and through alleyways, sometimes with our guns drawn. Who else has to work like that . Do surgeons, do airline pilots, do mayors . No. We do and the military does and, yet, that makes this profession special. And those who judge our actions [applause] those who judge our actions need to at least be educated about the world that we operate in. They need an endless narrative that reminds them of all that leads up to the moment of our decisionmaking, to the 10 seconds they see on tv and about which they feel qualified to judge. What we all witnessed in ferguson, missouri, at the dawn of this latest run of cop bashing was indeed a tragedy. It was an unfortunate incident for officer Darren Wilson and for citizen mike brown. What followed, however compounded that tragic situation , as people from across the United States converged on the great city of ferguson to exploit the situation for selfserving purposes. What was called for at that moment was an appeal to reasonableness, responsible rhetoric and cautioning against a rush to judgment. And a commitment, despite the heated tensions, to the rule of law and governing the lives of our great citizens. Instead, some very powerful people made statements, statements that continued to this day that only heightened rising tensions. Inflammatory language about racism, racist cops and racial profiling by police have blown a spark into an ember and an ember into a fire, a fire that now threatens in the short term this profession. A fire that has engulfed the officers of new york and dallas and baton rouge and ambush attacks. Ladies and gentlemen, race has been and will always be an explosive issue in america. Get used to it. It has been in my lifetime and it will be in all of yours as well. The incendiary rhetoric, those who knew better, create and continued to allow a pathway for a false narrative that then became the rally cry for cop haters all across america. A broad brush has been used to unfairly malign the reputation of the profession of policing here in the United States. The accusation has been made that our communities systematically engage in the practice of targeting our youth because of the color of their skin. That claim is patently false and i will spend the remainder of my time in policing fighting that hateful lie. [applause] not acknowledging the underlying of the blackth lives Matter Movement and the false narrative of Police Involved killings is counterproductive to the common good of this great republic. A feeding frenzy of race provocateurs, selfprominent politicians at the highest level of state and national government, anarchists and dozen of other groups sensing an opportunity to exploit a series of tragedies has seized upon this moment to advance their own selfish agendas. Those who oppose the rule of law are causing great damage to the profession of policing that has been my sole lifes work. They are trying to undermine the trusts that primarily minority and disadvantaged residents need to have in their communities finest. Those at the highest level of government have created a Tipping Point in which many are beginning to wonder if this honorable work is even worth it any more. That is how damaging, irresponsible and inflammatory rhetoric can be. Pathetically, many choose to benefit by throwing our nations finest under the bus in front of certain demographics. We all know and have always known that every person who dies at the hand of a Law Enforcement officer deserves a thorough and transparent investigation of those circumstances. Facts and evidence must be applied to the rule of law standard to make a determination of what happened and what should be done. And the rule of law must not cave to the emotional and impassioned pleas of the mob. Doing so has led to Police Pulling back in high crime areas where good, decent, lawabiding people live. People of color are the greatest losers in all this as Violent Crime rate skyrocket over time. This means more minority and impoverished crime victims. Our profession is strong and we endure. The rule of law in america, while seemingly and momentarily bode is still strong. Bowed is still strong. To date, the grand jury and impaneled juries have gotten it right in these matters. Most notably in the baltimore verdicts, related to the travesty of justice that was the unindictment of six officers and the sad death of freddie gray, these juries and judges have countered the biased motivation of the powerful. Finally, i want to speak on two emerging issues on the radar screen in criminal justice, sentencing and prison reform. Because any discussion about reform in these two areas that does not include a counterview about the consequences of a shortterm technical fix and its impact on crime victims will have catastrophic consequences on already stressed minority and impoverished communities. Artificially reducing prison populations or altering Sentencing Practices is bitterly shortsighted. The recidivist nature of criminals will cause more minorities to be victimized by violence. And the left claims to care. With 1715 total commutations during his presidency, president barack obama used his constitutional clemency power to shorten the sentences of more federal inmates than our prior 11 president s combined, culminating in 333 president ial commutations on his last day in office alone. 568 of obamas commutations were for people serving life sentences. And it is true, that was within his constitutional power. Of course a more advisable criminal Justice Policy reform approach is to attack the pathologies that increase the likelihood of criminal behavior. In my view, the best prison and sentencing reform is to enact policies that reduce unemployment, that improve k12 public education, reduce father absent homes, and send a message that criminal behavior will be met with severe consequences. [applause] that, ladies and gentlemen, establishes accountability for unwanted behavior. But thats the hard work. Its easier for some to just open up the jail house doors. Ill close with this. Are Police Officers perfect . Not by any stretch of the imagination. Are Police Agencies perfect . Not even close. But we are the best that our communities have to offer. The overwhelming discussion we need to have as a nation is one that addresses the behavior of people who have no respect for authority. About why so many fight who try to disarm the police, flee from the police and engage in other flawed lifestyle choices. Officers at the local level put on the uniforms and they go out every day. They spend their lifes work making their communities better and safer places to live. The world that officers operate in is recognized by our Supreme Court as complex, dynamic and rapidly evolving and one where unfortunately things can and do go wrong. When that happens, the american Law Enforcement officer needs to know that after an impartial and competent investigation, the facts and evidence of that particular case will be applied. They will be held to the rule of law standard for decision about their actions. Because after putting their lives on the line they do not deserve a standard of the false narratives, preconceptions, misconceptions, emotional rhetoric, or racial demagoguery from a ranting mob. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you. God bless you and may god continue to bless the United States of america. [applause] do we have the microphones ready to move around . Can our staff get that for us while were waiting . Do we know where they are . Let me just comment a minute. Sheriff clarke, i want to thank you for all you have done and all your common sense that you shared with us tonight. Many of you probably dont realize the difference, and i had forgotten it. But the difference between a sheriff and your police and your federal officials. The sheriff is elected locally, and as such he has to answer to the people. I think of all the Law Enforcement, they are the closest to the people, the chief of police in our local communities come next, our country was founded on the idea that local constables were important. That we knew who they were, that they knew who we were, and that when something went wrong we could talk with them. And it was not a police force that came in from far away and basically didnt know who you were and what you are all about. And so i think for us to have a sheriff tonight really sets the tone of what we as communities around our country should be looking towards to reestablish. If you have an elected sheriff, get to know him. If you have a chief of police, get to know them because i think we need to open those dialogues and support them where we can. As you can tell by tonight, this is one of the things weve been trying to do is to focus on those people that are closest to us who basically are there to respond and keep us safe. Do we have our microphones . Yeah, ok. If you want to put your hand up for a question, we will do so. And remember, one breath. Ok. I have one right down in the front. Wait, wait, wait. Sir, come back. Ill point to the person. Come right here. Sorry. This will be the first one. Go ahead. Sheriff, thank you very much for being here tonight. Sanctuary cities are much in the news at the moment. I wonder if you could speak to what you think of them and what should be done about them . Sheriff clarke it is high team high time that we deal with this concept of sanctuary cities. Sanctuary cities, as you know, are those safe havens that some communities mainly run by democrat liberal progressive mayors and other county officials. [laughter] really they are looking for a future voting base. Thats what this whole thing is about. Dont kid yourself about the stories you hear, about the crocodile tears about splitting up families and so on and so forth. Nobody is trying to do that. But the fact is that we have allowed this problem of illegal immigration to grow to the point that it has now. I dont know if anyone has an exact number. I heard anywhere between 11 million and 17 Million People in this country illegally. If youre going to be a sovereign nation you have to have borders and have to defend those borders. [applause] you cannot allow people to illegally enter into your country and take up residence. You just cannot do it. But we let this grow to this point today. From a criminal standpoint, because of former president barack obama dismantled some of the things that we had at the local level where we could assist. We dont have federal Immigration Authority at the local level. Cops, sheriffs deputies, sheriffs do not have authority to enforce federal immigration but we can work with i. C. E. , immigration and customs enforcement. We can work with them. Theyre the ones that do the investigating. They are the ones that do really the work on immigration and but since from a criminal standpoint they all come through once they are arrested that becomes a conduit , with i. C. E. Where they come in, take a look at the criminal population, do an investigation on individuals that they deem it. I dont have anything to do with them in terms of look at the this guy or this guy. They decide who theyre going to look at. If they feel that in a very short period of time that this person may be in the country illegally, they put out a detainer. This is a lawful order to hold somebody. But its not enforceable at local officials. A sheriff has to want to cooperate with them in that detainer. By the way, the person who became kind of the face of illegal immigration from a criminal standpoint, i. C. E. Asked that guy, people want say allegedly, i say killed her. Hasnt been convicted but he did. They asked that he be detained and the sheriff of San Francisco county, whatever that is, San Francisco is a sanctuary city and let the guy go. He ends up killing kate steinle. I will not allow that to happen in my county. I will not allow that to happen. [applause] but when i. C. E. Comes in and ask for a detainer with us, i do hold onto them until i say were. Takes us that takes them into custody. Weve got to get our hands around this problem. If we do not do it this time around, within the next four years, its never going to happen. Its not going to happen. This might be our last chance. My question is actually for peggy. My grandchildrens father is a Salt Lake City policeman. What does my daughter tell these little children when they are hearing that police are being shot every day . Peggy well, what i usually tell people honesty. They need to know. That there are some bad people in this world, and the Police Officers are here to protect. When i was in Law Enforcement, and i would go to the store in my uniform getting off duty, parents would tell their children, if you dont behave yourself, the Police Officer there is going to take you to jail. Its that basis that frightens children. They put that fear in the children. The children have that fear not the children have that fear not to talk to the police, not to communicate with the police, not to cooperate with the police. So when they put that seed inside of a child, what you see on the news is the outcome. Stop telling your children that the police are going to lock you up. Stop putting fear, because they are not there to lock you up. They are there to help you. Because if they get in trouble, they wont run to the police because they think the police are the bad guys. And that is what weve seen from ferguson. I have seen children out there throwing rocks, and my husband was on the front line. They were throwing rocks, urine, feces. And these were 7, 8yearolds. So we have got to get a collective effort to stop telling our children the police are going to lock you up if you are bad. The police are going to come and get you, they will shoot you because you are black. That is what we are seeing in this country. We are seeing an antipolice sentiment, and that has got to stop. Until we come together and tell the truth, and stand up for the blue and hashtag back the blue, then its never going to get better. Its always going to be this hatred towards cops. That is what you tell them. They are not here to harm you. They are here to help you. And until we do that its never going to get better. [applause] in donna the rest of you, if questions, wether will take a couple more. Sheriff clarke, thank you for who you are and what you do. My question is a simple one, and i think probably several people in this audience feel the same. What can an everyday person like me do to make a difference . Sheriff clarke you know, i get asked that question a lot, and what i find, theres a lot you can do, but everybody wants to move mountains. See everybody wants to solve some of these bigtime problems that this country is faced with. They want to do it all at once. Ok, but i use the analogy how do you eat an elephant . One spoonful at a time. [laughter] how you can help is make a difference in the lives of people around you, ok . And you can do that on an everyday basis. You do that for this child over here, for this adolescent over here, for your kids over there, for your neighbor over here. After a while youve made a difference in the lives of a lot of people. We dont look at it that way. We want to do the big stuff. We want to cure cancer. And i get that, but the reality is you are only going to be able to move the stone a little bit. Stop trying to move a mountain. Just move the stone a little bit. You can do that every time you come into contact with somebody. Heres one thing i am saying and that im starting to try to encourage people to do more and more, and it isnt just since the election of donald trump, the 45th president of United States. It started when i was on the road to campaign. A lot of donald Trump Supporters were underground. I knew there was an undercurrent. Wasnt being registered i knew it. [laughter] i was sensing it everywhere i would go to campaign for him. Everybody was trying to do this in secret. They would whisper to me. They would say, sheriff, im voting for donald trump. [laughter] they would say, sheriff, im supporting donald trump. I would at them and say why are you whispering it me . We got to stop Walking Around eggshells. You have to become a voice. Is going to take time if you havent done it. Because the people on the left are ugly. They will do some ugly stuff so i get why people are that way. But weve got to stop that, because the left is loud. They dont walk around in fear of who they support for elected office, their causes. They show up with thousands, you know, a lot of people at a a rally. Thats another thing you can do. Organize a rally, Something Like support for your police department. You know, use your social media and whatnot, your email list. So what if 25 people show up . Thats a start. Youve done something because youve shown these folks, point to the chief down here, youve shown them, this Community Cares about you. That means a lot to the psyche of a Law Enforcement officer. We know we have your support, but we dont get to see it. We only get to hear from the cop haters. We want to hear from you folks. So things like that, theres a lot you can do. You will figure it out, but gosh darn it, start being heard. Stop whispering that you voted for donald trump. Ok . [laughter] [applause] thank you, sheriff. I dont whisper. But what i want to ask you in ohio we have to jump through a lot of political hoops to get a concealed carry. I would like to know what you feel, would you rather us have concealed carry or open carry . Sheriff clarke both. [laughter] no, because these are individual rights and its your choice. It isnt for me to say. It is not for government to say what you should be able to have. All right . Many states have the open carry. Its a little difficult to do in some of the states that are antigun. Wisconsin has always had constitutional carry. Its written in the state constitution but people would not exercise it because the local police would arrest if you walk down the street brandishing a firearm. Wisconsin in three, four years ago in an active conceal carry, enacted conceal carry but thats an individual choice. The states like you said that a concealed carry that stuff you have to push there with your legislator but theres opportunity now. Theres a real opportunity to get back to that founding document, and to implore the ballot box if you have to, your legislators to realize these are individual rights. You dont grant them to me. I was born with them, but this isnt how the question is framed. Conceal, we cant give it is not for government to give it to you anyway. [applause] you have to be smart about it. I never advise anybody go out and do something that might be legal but might be a little crazy. Heres what you have to do. You have to build a Critical Mass. You have to build a Critical Mass of people in support, and then you do it collectively. Ill tell you right now if you have 500 people that show up at some public space brandishing a firearm, the cops aint going to arrest 500 people. [laughter] thats how the left does it. Right . 1,000 people, who are the cops going to arrest anyone . You cant. So thats why i say dont do it by yourself. You will get arrested. [laughter] but build the Critical Mass and then what will happen over time , a watershed moment will be there, and then you crash to the door and they cant stop you. But it takes time. So you have to ask yourself, how am i going to build this Critical Mass within the state of ohio . You dont have to do it statewide. Do it in your community. Thats how you got to get this done. Critical mass, folks. Thats how the left does it. I am telling you. I know how they work. Read Saul Alinskys book for rules for radicals. We laugh about Community Organizing with obama, but they execute that perfectly. They organize. They built a Critical Mass. Thats how we got to gay marriage. We did not get to gay marriage overnight. Im not here to the aspects, the pros and cons of gay marriage. That didnt happen overnight. But in the culture war thats gone on in the last 25, 30 years in this country on some of these issues, we didnt push back. We kept stepping back as they are pushing this crap on us. We kept, whats it to hurt . Well, you know, fine. Thats fine. Well now were at that point where they have shoved it down our throats. They waited for that watershed moment, it came in the United StatesSupreme Court. It never shouldve been in the United StatesSupreme Court. [applause] but you see how they do. They are very good. Their Operational Plan is to be envied. We have to become more organized like them. So build a Critical Mass for all the stuff that you want to do, like this organization here. I believe i would bet when you started it didnt start with this many people. All right. Youve got to build, build, grow the nest, get more people involved. Thats how you get this stuff done. Donna last question. I suspect as a little boy you wanted to be a policeman . Sheriff clarke no, maam. [laughter] so what was the defining moment . Sheriff clarke when i was a little boy, i wanted to be a Football Player like my uncle. My uncle played for the dallas cowboys. [applause] and my dads brother and, obviously, he is my favorite uncle and thats what it wanted to be. Anyway, i came about this in a strange way. Growing up as an adolescent kid, black kid in milwaukee, urban center, that which was talked about by peggy how the rhetoric, some of the language we used, the narratives we create will have an impact on people. So i was an adolescent at the time of the black panther movement. Bobby seal, huey newton, and others. And you know, you see this was during the turbulent 1960s by the way. I was 12, 13 years old. All that stuff that was played out on the tv, the riots, the civil rights marches. It has an impact on people. The impact, the picture that was painted for me in black america was that the cops were bad. So i grew up as a kid not liking the police. But i didnt have to worry too much about that, because i had an engaged dad. Product of a twoparent family. My dad was real big on discipline. And when you get my book, i relate a story in there about my first exposure to the police. I was with a couple of buddies of mine, we were hanging out outside my house. My dad didnt let hang out on the street corners are down the street. He wanted my rear end at home. He said you can invite your friends over to hang out here. He wanted to keep an eye on me. I had an engaged dad. And a squad car drives by. Stick up the black power symbol, right . I was about 12, 13 years old, a punk kid, right . The car stops. [laughter] i didnt expect that. [laughter] and backs up and the cop says can i help you . My dad was at home at the time, summer day so the doors open. He comes outside, he walks up to the squad car and says officer, thats my son. And he said i thought he was flagging us down, he had his hand up. My dad said to the cop, ill take care of it. [laughter] squad took off because he knew. The police knew, he will handle this, we dont have to do anything. I was hoping that squad would come back. [laughter] yeah, im waving you back. My dad, strict disciplinarian, comes back and says get in the house. My friends ran off. [laughter] and he asked me what happened and i said i told him what happened. He looked at me and he said, why are you screwing with the police . He said leave the police alone. That was the end of it. I thought it was done. All right, my dad handled it in the right way. He had the fear of god in me anyway, but basically what he was saying, respect the police, leave them alone, dont screw with them. Ok, so anyway, i grew up not really liking the police. But my dad, as i get into 18, 19 years old, you have to be 21 to be a cop. My dad would kind of float it out there. Do you ever think of being a Police Officer . Im thinking no, i didnt like the police. I didnt say that but thats kind of how i felt. So, you know, as im going to school and had a couple of summer jobs, and the one job i think that convinced me, i was driving a beer truck. Now, thats fun for an 18, 19yearold kid. It is. But ill tell you what, a couple of summers of that and then a full year of that before i became 21 of hauling beer kegs and beer cases up and down rickety stairs to taverns and restaurants, i just realized, this aint for me. I did not know what to do. I didnt have any 20, 21 years old. So i thought, remember what my dad said, and i will try to go take the police exam. Here i am. [applause] so anyway, i can relate to young adolescent and black males that have this chip on their shoulder about the police. You know what, they werent born with that. Thats a learned behavior, i can tell you, somebody taught them that. Thats the thing they see on tv. The constant, the anticop rhetoric. Thats why this stuff is so dangerous. I talked about it. Thats what i want powerful people like eric holder and president obama, they had an opportunity. They had an opportunity to mentor a population of kids that come from a dysfunctional environment. They dont have any male mentoring. Their image of the police is negative. There was a chance there. There was one of what he called a learning moment, that he could have reminded young people, you may hate this guy in this uniform over there but hes an authority figure. Whatever he says you have to do , like it or not. He had an opportunity to do that and he went the other way. I was very upset about that. I say that because i understand this these young black males and their anger. I get all that. But we have opportunities. I go to a lot of schools in milwaukee. I see a lot of young black people on the street. You know what, they admire me. I am not saying they all like me. Theyre young people, kids. So theres an opportunity there for me in these situations to make the difference. What can we do, what can i do . There was an opportunity for the president of the United States , who was looked up to in the black community, to do the right thing, to put the politics aside. The politics was too tempting for him. He exploited that opportunity for political purposes. Did great damage to the black community, did great damage to this profession. He did great damage to this country. It bothers me. Donna thank you so much, sheriff clarke. [applause] are you going to run for the senate . [laughter] this morning on cspan after washington journal, a discussion about the u. S. Russian relationship. At George Washington university, with light coverage at 10 00 eastern. An interview with the chief advisor to the president of afghanistan, like from the center for strategic and International Studies at 12 30 on cspan two. Cspans washington journal, life every day with new and news and policy issues that affect you. Newsmax Media Incorporated ceo discusses Donald Trumps presidency so far and the white houses relationship with the media. Discusses her can, on how best to repeal and replace the Affordable Care act. An Antidefamation League ceo jonathan greenback discusses the ongoing threat made against Jewish Community centers and schools. Watch cspans washington journal, beginning at 7 a. M. Eastern. Join the discussion. Announcer next, an oversight hearing on the tsa. House numbers examined allegations by the office of hasial counsel that the tsa been uncooperative in its investigation of retaliation