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Report: Police Chief Suspends Charity Event Because Republicans Would Have Been There

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David Krayden Ottawa Bureau Chief
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A California police chief shut down a charity event after he learned Republicans were invited, according to Fox News.

The “Blue Bowl” is a fundraiser for the family of Sgt. Ron Helus, an officer killed in a 2018 mass shooting. But Thousand Oaks Police Chief Tim Hagel decided it wasn’t a go after learning that Republicans had been invited, Los Angeles Fox News affiliate FOX 11 reported Tuesday.

“He basically said over and over in the conversation, ‘This is not Trump country, that slogan ‘Make America Great’ is not favorable, popular, within 1,200 square miles,’ that we don’t want Republicans here. I could not believe it,” Mike Randall, vice president of the Fallen Officers Foundation, told FOX 11. (RELATED: Whoopi Goldberg Shreds Debra Messing Over Blacklisting Trump Supporters)

Supporters recite the Pledge of Allegiance prior to US President Donald Trump speaking at a "Make America Great Again" rally at Freedom Hall Civic Center in Johnson City, Tennessee on October 1, 2018. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images)

Supporters recite the Pledge of Allegience prior to US President Donald Trump speaking at a “Make America Great Again” rally at Freedom Hall Civic Center in Johnson City, Tennessee on Oct. 1, 2018. (Photo: MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images)

The police chief suggested it could have been worse, according to Randall.

“’The only thing,’ and I quote, ‘the only thing you [could have done to make] this worse, Mike, was to invite Dick Cheney and Sarah Huckabee Sanders,'” Hagel allegedly continued. “And I went, ‘Wow, are you kidding me?'”

The guests included Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s public safety liaison, celebrity Trump ally Scott Baio and singer Joy Villa, who has also indicated and showed her support for the president several times.

Joy Villa attends the 61st Annual GRAMMY Awards at Staples Center on February 10, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

Joy Villa attends the 61st Annual GRAMMY Awards at Staples Center on Feb. 10, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

Randall said he was told by the police to banish the apparently Trump-associated guests or the police department would cease supporting the event. Randall reportedly didn’t budge and neither did the chief.

“He goes, ‘Yeah, this ain’t gonna work for us,’ I said, ‘You’re not gonna support this with the honor guard?’ And he goes, ‘No, we’re not bringing the honor guard. We’re not coming. We’re not going to be there, not supporting it,'” said Randall. (RELATED: Newsom Says Republicans ‘Will Go Into The Waste Bin Of Society,’ Compares America In 2019 To California In The ‘90s)

According to Fox News, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department that oversees the Thousand Oaks police detachment issued the following statement:

“The ‘Blue Bowl’ event was represented as a charitable flag football tournament to raise funds for the family of Sergeant Ron Helus. An event that would honor Ron’s memory and provide support to his wife Karen and son Jordan. As the event began to materialize, we became concerned with the behavior of some of the organizers of the event. Although I believe the organizers had good intentions, the event was moving in a direction we no longer felt comfortable supporting.”

Despite several attempts by the Daily Caller to clarify this statement, this sheriff’s department did not return any phone calls.

Participation by Republicans has created contention at other events. Earlier this year, Texas Republican Rep. Will Hurd, one of the few in Congress with substantial cybersecurity experience, was uninvited to speak at a cybersecurity summit because of his pro-life views. Despite lack of electoral success by Republicans in the state, Trump reportedly enjoyed a successful fundraising trip in California last month.