Explosive audio was released on Monday that allegedly showed Democratic presidential candidate Mike Bloomberg defending his stop-and-frisk policies at a 2015 Aspen Institute appearance by saying that law enforcement should target minorities “because that’s where all the crime is.”
The audio was released by podcast host Benjamin Dixon, who encouraged people to share it “far and wide.”
In the audio, Bloomberg allegedly says, “95% of your murders – murderers and murder victims fit one M.O. You can just take the description, Xerox it and pass it out to all the cops. They are male, minorities, 16-25. That’s true in New York, that’s true in virtually every city and that’s where the real crime is.”
“You’ve got to get the guns out of the hands of the people that are getting killed,” Bloomberg continued. “You want to spend the money on a lot of cops in the streets. Put those cops where the crime is, which means in minority neighborhoods.”
“So, one of the unintended consequences is people say, ‘oh my God, you are arresting kids for marijuana that are all minorities.’ Yes, that’s true. Why? Because we put all the cops in the minority neighborhoods,” Bloomberg continued. “Yes, that’s true. Why do we do it? Because that’s where all the crime is. And the way you get the guns out of the kids’ hands is to throw them up against the walls and frisk them. And then they start say[ing], ‘Oh I don’t want to get caught.’ So they don’t bring the gun. They still have a gun, but they leave it at home.”
Share this far and wide. Unless the mainstream media picks it up, it will be isolated to twitter. pic.twitter.com/Fm0YCi4ZRy
— Benjamin Dixon (@BenjaminPDixon) February 11, 2020
Dixon also tweeted out a 2015 article from The Aspen Times that stated that Bloomberg blocked the footage from his speech from being released.
“Michael Bloomberg representatives have asked the Aspen Institute not to distribute footage of his recent appearance in Aspen, where the three-term New York City mayor made pointed comments concerning minorities and gun control,” The Aspen Times reported. “Both the Institute and GrassRoots TV, the organization that filmed the event, confirmed Thursday that they will not broadcast the footage online or on television as planned.”
The Aspen Institute’s chief external affairs officer Jim Spiegelman said at the time, “We basically honor the wishes of our speakers, and Mayor Bloomberg preferred that we not use the video for broadcast. He did not give a reason nor did we have any reason to ask for one. We often feature speakers who prefer that their presentations not be videotaped.”
The audio sparked intense reaction online from across the political spectrum.
Abdul El-Sayed wrote: “This is verbatim the argument that @MikeBloomberg made when I questioned him about stop and frisk in 2012 at a @PDSoros retreat. It is technocratic racism at its most virulent–the kind that hides its immorality in the veneer of amorality.”
This is verbatim the argument that @MikeBloomberg made when I questioned him about stop and frisk in 2012 at a @PDSoros retreat. It is technocratic racism at its most virulent–the kind that hides its immorality in the veneer of amorality. https://t.co/3dTBAyvRJg
— Abdul El-Sayed (@AbdulElSayed) February 11, 2020
Bernie Sanders’ National Press Secretary responded by writing, “This should be playing on mainstream news channels as frequently as the ads with which billionaire Bloomberg has saturated the market.”
This should be playing on mainstream news channels as frequently as the ads with which billionaire Bloomberg has saturated the market. #integritybeatstrump https://t.co/45fkMMfM84
— Briahna Solidarity Gray (@briebriejoy) February 10, 2020
Real Clear Politics write Mark Hemingway wrote: “Hoo boy. This is bad…”
Hoo boy. This is bad… https://t.co/lKVmBopLRO
— Mark Hemingway (@Heminator) February 11, 2020
Human Events Managing Editor Ian Miles Cheong wrote: “‘Based and redpilled’ Mike Bloomberg just won the white supremacist vote.”
“Based and redpilled” Mike Bloomberg just won the white supremacist vote. pic.twitter.com/DumHn4aPqv
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) February 11, 2020
This is a breaking news story, check back for updates.