The Biden White House is under fire from GOP politicians after it reversed course and announced that flags would not be flown at half-staff on Peace Officers Memorial Day on Saturday despite an earlier memo announcing that they would be.
From Rep. Brian Mast:
Earlier this week Joe Biden announced that flags would be flown at Half Staff tomorrow to honor the men & women in blue who died in the line of duty. Today he “Friday news dumped” that he’d changed his mind: in his opinion, they aren’t worthy of lowering the flags. Unacceptable! pic.twitter.com/LJHPp4Wxa0
— Rep. Brian Mast (@RepBrianMast) May 15, 2021
And here’s NH Gov. Chris Sununu:
THREAD: Late tonight Joe Biden quietly tried to reverse his Peace Officers Memorial Day Proclamation, hoping no one would notice they are no longer calling for flags to fly at Half Staff across the USA honoring our men women in blue. This is outrageous and precedent breaking. 1/ pic.twitter.com/05RLqcs5ng
— Chris Sununu (@GovChrisSununu) May 14, 2021
On May 10th, the Biden Administration announced in a release flags would be flying at Half Staff across the country to honor our heroes on the front line. Tonight, in the eleventh hour, the Biden Administration is now no longer calling for flags to fly at Half Staff. 2/ pic.twitter.com/PLMFU8WwNd
— Chris Sununu (@GovChrisSununu) May 14, 2021
New Hampshire will continue to honor the men and women who have died or been injured in the line of duty by flying flags at Half Staff on Peace Officers Memorial Day as we have always done, and as is right. 3/
— Chris Sununu (@GovChrisSununu) May 14, 2021
New Hampshire’s law enforcement are the best in the country, and they are owed an explanation for this sudden reversal. I call on New Hampshire’s congressional delegation to join with me in rejecting this disrespectful decision. 4/4
— Chris Sununu (@GovChrisSununu) May 14, 2021
Sen. Ted Cruz weighed in as well, calling the move “bizarre”:
This is bizarre. https://t.co/YNKpMR0DRy
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) May 16, 2021
Now, the White House didn’t go on the record with the Washington Post, but hinted that the reason was a scheduling “quirk” where Peace Officers Memorial Day fell on the same day as Armed Force Day:
Biden orders flags flown at half-staff — then orders them back up, as two events collide https://t.co/L49b1gVcBU
— Post Politics (@postpolitics) May 15, 2021
From the Post:
President Biden initially ordered flags on Saturday to be flown at half-staff. Then he ordered them back up at full-staff.
On Saturday, those two days were one and the same.
Biden’s initial proclamation last week said that flags should be flown at half-staff. But he reissued a proclamation on Friday making clear that flags were to remain at full-staff.
The White House declined to comment on the record about the change, but suggested that it was done to remain in compliance with U.S. codes honoring Armed Forces Day.
Wow, that is “bizarre.” Why in the world wouldn’t they go on the record if the explanation is that simple?
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