Editor’s Note: Our readers responded strongly to this story when it originally ran; we’re reposting it here in case you missed it.
Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff took up several handicapped parking spaces during a Whole Foods shopping trip in August.
Emhoff’s motorcade blocked off more than one handicapped parking spot for his shopping errand in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Brentwood.
The entertainment lawyer sauntered from the entrance of Whole Foods with two bags of groceries.
Emhoff bantered with a man who he assumed was a fan in the video, his Secret Service evidently deciding that the accommodation for the disabled didn’t apply to their protectee.
The move merited criticism on a Fox News segment.
“Grab the privilege and ride it home, cowboy,” @HARRISFAULKNER decries “oblivious” Second Gentleman after his motorcade blocks handicapped parking spaces. pic.twitter.com/YDtDFS9zbh
— Virginia Kruta (@VAKruta) August 15, 2022
Secret Service protectees often rely on their detail to do their grocery shopping for them.
It’s unclear why Emhoff decided it was necessary to travel to the luxury market himself, incurring additional difficulty and expense on members of the community.
Fox host Harris Faulkner took particular exception with Emhoff’s decision to help himself to a space reserved for the disabled.
“Just grab the privilege and ride it home, cowboy,” Faulkner said of Emhoff’s selfish move.
“I really don’t think it was mean-spirited, but it is another thing that that is politically dangerous — it’s oblivious,” the Fox host said.
Douglas’ detail was in the handicapped parking spots for more than 20 minutes, according to the Daily Mail.
? “Secret Service detail blocks off handicap parking for 20 minutes while Kamala Harris’ husband Doug Emhoff shops at Whole Foods in Los Angeles” https://t.co/Vv9muqCSDN
— My views are my own! (@VietnmVetDghtr) August 12, 2022
Emhoff is the first person in history to hold the title of Second Gentleman. There’s never been a female Vice President before his wife, Kamala Harris.
This isn’t the first time that a federal protectee has used their Secret Service detail to avoid the inconveniences of everyday life in Los Angeles.
A Los Angeles neighborhood was swarmed with homeless encampments after Hunter Biden moved away from a luxury rental home.
Hunter’s Secret Service detail had seemingly kept third-world style urban camping out of the area.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.