A police station in Montgomery County, Maryland is being criticized by Democratic officials for displaying a wooden rendition of the iconic “Blue Lives Matter” flag, as reported by local news outlet WTOP.
The flag was given to the Montgomery County Police Department by woodworker James Shelton in Germantown, Maryland, who gave a similar wooden flag featuring a single red stripe to the local fire station. Both flags were a gift in honor of National First Responders Day.
But in response to the flag being displayed at the police station, County Executive Marc Elrich (D-Md.) demanded that the flag be taken down, calling it “a symbol of submissiveness” and “divisive,” and declared that it “will not be posted at the 5th District nor in any public space within the Police Department.”
Elrich’s forced removal of the flag was met with criticism from Governor Larry Hogan (R-Md.), who said he was “offended and disgusted” that the flag was ordered taken down after it had been made for the police department by Shelton and his son, and “strongly [called] on Mr. Elrich to immediately reverse this terrible decision and to apologize to the police and citizens of Montgomery County.”
Elrich has previously come under heavy scrutiny for his implementation of “sanctuary” policies on Montgomery County, which has allowed numerous illegal aliens to go free, even those accused of rape.