Controversial King County agency leader Tamer Abouzeid deleted hundreds of tweets that landed him in hot water. But he’s now back to posting virtually the same kind of content. It displays a bias that makes him unfit to lead.
Abouzeid is the civilian leader of the Office of Law Enforcement Oversite (OLEO). The agency is tasked with investigating complaints against police. But the defund activist was caught tweeting offensive anti-cop messages indicating a bias that undermines any investigation he oversees. He said staffing and funding police departments only serves to “perpetuate more fear, pain, and trauma” on blacks and Latinos and spread a baseless conspiracy that cops impacted by fentanyl exposure on the job are “likely stories of cops who are consuming drugs themselves and overdosing.” He even tweeted out an official OLEO statement calling the entire legal system “racist” and in need of “dismantling.” His feed was also filled with anti-Semitic commentary.
The King County Council, made up of council members who agree with the anti-police rhetoric, gave him a pass. The media did too. After weeks of leaving his account on private, and mass deleting tweets prior to May 2022, Abouzeid made his Twitter feed public again. Now, he’s back to calling out cops (and posting anti-Semitic commentary).
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Tamer Abouzeid still doesn’t like cops
It’s unclear why Abouzeid deleted any of his previous tweets. His new messages send virtually the same messages, though slightly less direct. But he’s still anti-police and believes, thanks to police, “We are no longer on a road to fascism — it is already here.”
Abouzeid doesn’t appear to believe in any law enforcement role in drug enforcement. During the debate to classify drug possession and use a gross misdemeanor so Seattle City Attorney Ann Davison could leverage jail to get addicts into treatment, Abouzeid complained the ordinance was “anti-BIPOC, [and] unscientific.” He also mocked Seattle City Councilmember Sara Nelson for pursuing the ordinance, including retweeting a message calling her “garbage.”
The anti-cop director endorsed the #StopCopCity movement where violent Antifa activists and other extremists are trying to stop a new police training facility from construction in Atlanta. He even spread conspiracies about the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). “Some live in a dreamland that the FBI of today is nothing like that of COINTELPRO. And some in the even more fantastical dream that the FBI targets the right, not left,” he claimed.
At times, Abouzeid appears to endorse violence.
“They keep telling us it’s a fight for the soul of the country, for democracy, for the rule of law, then they fight like it’s a f*****g ring toss at the state fair,” he tweeted. He also pinned a tweet expressing a new motto, “If people should be murdered for being annoying you might want to shut the f*** up.”
To say this is misleading is not enough; this is a complete lie. Unfortunately our country is full of people like this who have no qualms about lying to push their racist, fascist agendas. From Mississippi to Washington to Florida to everywhere in between. https://t.co/Z9djlJYi2Z
— Tamer Y. Abouzeid (@TamerLikeHammer) May 27, 2023
Why is this a story?
Government officials or agency directors are allowed to express themselves, even if it’s offensive. So why is this a story?
Abouzeid is tasked with overseeing investigations into the conduct of Sheriff’s deputies. But he seeks to defund law enforcement agencies and dismantle the institution of policing. And he brazenly posts his partisan views. How can he impartially oversee investigations with this level of bias? The system is set up to go against deputies and Abouzeid can use his influence to destroy the careers of deputies, a desire informed by his anti-law enforcement sentiment. The county council appointed an extremist activist to the position. Not only does he turn OLEO into a joke, he will open the county up to liability over his clear bias.
And Abouzeid’s partisan hot takes aren’t even contained to his personal account.
The official OLEO account has become overtly partisan; an extension of Abouzeid’s personal Twitter account. If it’s not posting stories hypercritical of cops, Abouzeid’s OLEO account promotes drug decriminalization and calls out homeless encampment sweeps, two topics well outside the purview of the office. The county is allowing a government-owned account to promote partisan political positions at taxpayer expense.
That the county council excuses the tweets and his behavior is telling: the council is filled with unserious people who are looking to weaken the King County Sheriff’s Office.
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Listen to the Jason Rantz Show on weekday afternoons from 3:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. on KTTH 770 AM (HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). He is the author of the book What’s Killing America: Inside the Radical Left’s Tragic Destruction of Our Cities. Subscribe to the podcast. Follow @JasonRantz on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Check back frequently for more news and analysis.
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