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Hail to the sheriff: Trump praises San Bernardino County’s McMahon

by in News

San Bernardino County Sheriff John McMahon was sitting in the audience Wednesday during a joint meeting of the Major County Sheriffs of America and Major Cities Chief Association in Washington DC when the speaker surprised the sheriff by calling him to the front.

“Where is John?  Come up here, John,” the speaker said.

That speaker was President Donald Trump.

Trump had been talking about crime prevention and border security, among other topics, while praising law enforcement. That’s when Trump recounted the December 2015 terrorist attack at the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino that killed 14 people and wounded 22 others.

“Immediately, John worked with the local police chief to respond. Their brave officers chased down the terrorists and brought their sinister rampage to a rapid end,” Trump said. “Sheriff, we thank you and your officers for your service.”

McMahon then worked his way to the lectern, shook the president’s hand and said, “(You’re) a little bit taller than I am.”

McMahon continued in a more serious tone:

“Thank you so much for your kind words, Mr. President.  And I will tell you, your support for law enforcement is incredible, and we all in this room thank you for what you’ve done for us. The relationships we have with our federal law enforcement partners are absolutely incredible.  Better than they’ve been in my 34-year career.

But I think the true heroes — and we have to remember this — are the men and women who we all get to work with each day that put on the uniform and go do the job of protecting and serving all of the communities we’re responsible for.  Thank you so much, Mr. President.”

McMahon was not expecting to speak or be greeted by the president, sheriff’s spokeswoman Cindy Bachman said. McMahon, Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes and others were in Washington to discuss school safety, active-shooter response issues and legislative issues, according to the online conference agenda.

Speakers included FBI Director Christopher A. Wray and Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen M. Nielsen. Trump was not mentioned in the agenda.