#Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler booed, heckled while addressing protesters

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Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler speaking with a crowd of hostile protesters.
AP Photo/Gillian Flaccus

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler faced a hail of boos as he addressed Black Lives Matter protesters amid unrest in his city Wednesday night.

Chants of “Tear Gas Teddy” and “Do Your Job!” were heard as the mayor made his way to the steps of the Multnomah County Justice Center to speak to about 2,000 people, according to video posted on social media and local outlets.

“I stand with you,” Wheeler told the crowd.

He demanded that federal officers leave the city, calling their presence “an unconstitutional occupation,” according to local outlet KATU-TV.

Camouflage-clad agents from the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies were deployed to Portland last week to protect federal monuments and buildings after nearly two months of demonstrations over police brutality and racism.

The agents have been accused of using excessive force to restrain protesters and of arresting people with no probable cause.

“The tactics that are being used by the federal officers are abhorrent,” Wheeler said.

Following the remarks, he took questions from the crowd, including one about whether he would commit to abolishing the Portland Police Bureau.

His refusal to do so did not go over well, spurring a flurry of boos from the crowd.

The questions then shifted back to the feds, with one person asking if there was anything that could be done locally or at the state level to stop them, KGW-TV reported.

“I think what we’re doing tonight is actually the best thing we can do right now… Be here, be heard, be unified and be clear,” Wheeler said.

“We didn’t want them, we didn’t ask for them, they’re not trained for what they’re being asked to do. And we want them to leave.”

One protester encouraged Wheeler to stay all night to witness the federal response.

“The reason I am here tonight is to stand with you,” the mayor said. “So if they’re launching the tear gas against you, they’re launching the tear gas against me.”

Projected on the wall behind him was a list of demands from the protesters, including calls to force the feds out, free jailed protesters, slash the police budget and: “You, Ted Wheeler, need to resign.”