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A newly surfaced audio clip from 2015 shows Michael Bloomberg giving a speech where he tosses up a strong defense in favor of the policing procedure known as “stop and frisk.”
The procedure is considered highly controversial because it disproportionately targets people of color.
The audio clip is from a speech that Bloomberg gave to the Aspen Institute, where he acknowledged that the “stop and frisk” procedure targeted minorities, especially “kids” who cops must throw “up against the wall” in order to disarm them.
“Ninety-five percent of murders–murderers and murder victims fit one M.O. You can just take a description, Xerox it and pass it out to all the cops,” said Bloomberg in the speech. “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,” he continued. “You’ve got to get the guns out of the hands of people that are getting killed.” He went on to explain that “minority neighborhoods” is where the crime is, and how the policy could have “unintended consequences.”
“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 minority neighborhoods,” said Bloomberg.
“Why do we do it? Because that’s where all the crime is. And the way you get the guns out of the kid’s hands is to throw them up against the wall and frisk them,” he said.
Related: Judge Judy Backs Mike Bloomberg Campaign, But Why?
As Bloomberg has been rising in recent polls during his current Democratic campaign, he has been receiving a lot of questions about his previous support for such a controversial policy.
“Over time I’ve come to understand something that I’ve long struggled to admit to myself,” Bloomberg explained to people who congregated at the Christian Cultural Center in Brooklyn. “I got something really important wrong. I got something really important wrong.
“Today, I want you to know that I realize that back then I was wrong,” he continued. “And I’m sorry.
President Trump was quick to take to Twitter to blast Bloomberg for his past actions, tweeting in all caps, “WOW, BLOOMBERG IS A TOTAL RACIST!” on Tuesday, which was just as quickly taken down without explanation.
Related: Democratic Candidate Starts YODELING During Debate – Must See Video!
