Local NAACP calls for Deltona city commissioner to step down
DELTONA, Fla. - The West Volusia chapter of the NAACP is calling for Deltona Commissioner Loren King to step down after he was linked to the group The Oath Keepers.
President Sean King says he learned about the commissioner’s affiliation after it was reported by the Daytona Beach News-Journal.
"I don’t know him as a person, but I’m investigating this group, and anytime I see this group forming in any political arena we need to address it," he said.
According to a document from the U.S. Department of Justice, the Oath Keepers is described as follows:
"The Oath Keepers are a large but loosely organized collection of individuals, some of whom are associated with militias. Some members of the Oath Keepers believe that the federal government has been co-opted by a cabal of elites actively trying to strip American citizens of their rights. Though the Oath Keepers will accept anyone as members, they explicitly focus on recruiting current and former military, law enforcement, and first-responder personnel."
Commissioner King admits he was part of the group for two to three years but is no longer part of it.
As a Navy veteran, he tells FOX 35 News he joined because he wanted to take an oath to defend the country, an oath he says he still upholds.
"I took an oath to uphold the constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign or domestic, that was never rescinded," he said.
He says he cut ties with the group around the time he was elected in 2018.
"Some of the things that they were doing I went well: ‘You know there’s a fine line between defending the constitution and breaking the law,’ and so I thought you know what this might not be the place for me to be," he said.
The NAACP says mere affiliation past or present is alarming.
"Something about this group attracted him initially, so what about this group attracted him? Why did you not realize this was an extremist group," said Sean King.
Commissioner King says he doesn’t plan to resign and doesn’t think his constituents want him to either.
"They believe I'm doing the right thing. they believe I’m doing good things for the city," he said.
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