The most awful part of yesterday’s school shootings in Oakland was Sheng Thao’s crocodile tears. The blood of the victims was still warm in their bodies when Thao hopped on to social media yesterday, in record time, to get in her self-serving 2 cents on the shootings. Here’s what she said on Twitter:
“I am devastated and heartbroken over today’s shooting outside Bay Area Technology School, Rudsdale Newcomer High School and Sojourner Truth Independent Study. As a mother my heart breaks for the families who thought the worst may have happened to their children. I want to send my deepest condolences to the victims and their families and I hope they make a swift recovery. These violent acts are beyond unacceptable and we will catch these criminals and ensure they face justice. There are a handful of people committing these crimes and we must get them off our streets. We need to hire more investigators so they can get this done, including inter-city and inter-county partnerships dedicated to clearing Oakland’s backlogged crime lab.”
And here’s what she said on Facebook:
“I am devastated and heartbroken over today’s shooting outside Bay Area Technology School, Rudsdale Newcomer High School and Sojourner Truth Independent Study. As a mother my heart breaks for the families who thought the worst may have happened to their children. I want to send my deepest condolences to the victims and their families and I hope they make a swift recovery. These violent acts are beyond unacceptable and we will catch these criminals and ensure they face justice. There are a handful of people committing these crimes and we must get them off our streets. We need to hire more investigators so they can get this done, including inter-city and inter-county partnerships dedicated to clearing Oakland’s backlogged crime lab.”
Yes, Thao was in such a hurry to get online that she copied and pasted the same comment on both social media platforms. And I have to tell you, when I read them, my outrage was large. What Ms. Thao did not tell readers was how many times she tried to defund the Oakland Police Department.
On June 24, 2021, the San Francisco Chronicle reported with this headline: “Oakland City Council Votes to Defund Police, Stripping More Than $17M from Department Budget…Thursday during a special meeting that included hours of public input, Council members Nikki Fortunato Bas and Carroll Fife spearheaded the push to defund the Oakland Police Department with the amended budget vote.”
Three months later, on Sept. 21, 2021, another S.F. Chronicle headline:
“Amid rising violence, Oakland council votes to fund another police academy. ...On Tuesday night, the resolution to add a fifth academy, introduced by Councilmember Sheng Thao, passed 6-2 with council President Nikki Fortunato Bas and Councilmember Carroll Fife voting against the plan.”
Let me ask you, what the hell is Thao trying to sell us? She tried to defund OPD, which was already struggling with historically low numbers to fight crime. Now, suddenly, she’s running for Mayor, and we learn she’s “devastated and heartbroken” by the shootings that inevitably happened because of people like her.
Is Thao kidding? Does she think we’re stupid? Why aren’t decent Oaklanders rising up and denouncing Thao? We’re sadly used to double-talking politicians changing their tune, but even for the usual hypocrisy, Thao is setting new lows. What kind of person is she? Thao insults our intelligence. She seems to think we have no memory. If anyone is suffering under the delusion that Thao will be tough on crime, I hate to disillusion you, but she won’t. She climbed up the slippery slope of local politics with a super-progressive “social justice” agenda that appealed to cop-haters and resulted in our current crime wave, and it’s crazy to think she’ll change her mind. If she’s elected Mayor, Thao will wait for the first opportunity to defund the police, and next time, she might get away with it.
Please vote for Seneca Scott for Mayor. Of all the candidates, he’s the most pro-public safety. Talk to your friends and neighbors and tell them not to vote for Thao. Remind them, if they don’t already know, how viciously Thao attacked the Oakland Police Department over the years. Tell them a leopard can’t change its spots, and a cop hater will always hate.
Steve Heimoff