1. Il Bovino
Please watch this short clip. It’s under two minutes. And then lets talk about what you see.
First: You see Chicago police officers at the scene outside the Chicago courthouse. They are in uniform, clearly identified, and outfitted with the normal tools of law enforcement. Their faces are visible. Many of them are using bikes, which are useful tools in urban law enforcement.
Second: There are anonymous federal officers. They are in camouflage gear. Why? Is camouflage an effective tool for urban law enforcement? No. It is a fashion statement designed to evoke military power. Look at their kit. They are tacked out as though they were operating in Fallujah. Not just body armor, but military-grade helmets and comms gear.
Can you see their faces? No. In all but a few cases, these federal officers have completely obscured their faces.1
Did you notice this guy?
He is in full tactical gear while . . . filming video. Why is a federal officer doing cinematic documentation when there are cameras everywhere? It’s not because the CPB is trying to keep everyone honest. They’re using one of their soldiers to collect footage for propaganda purposes.
Then there’s the Border Patrol’s local comandante, Gregory Bovino. Watch him as he strides out of the courthouse, mounts the driver’s door of a pickup truck, holds up a clenched fist, salutes into the middle distance, and finally employs an exaggerated series of tactical command gestures, as if he were ordering a platoon into action at Dog Green Beach. Really, you have to see this part at the 0:18 mark.
So many questions.
Why is Bovino using a pickup truck? What is the mission-oriented purpose for that vehicle in this setting?
Why is he driving? He is a senior commander. His time is valuable and his brief is organization. Shouldn’t a junior staffer be driving Bovino so he can work productively on spreadsheets, or review reports, or whatever a senior-level leader in the CBP does?
Why isn’t Bovino wearing a mask? We have been told that it is critically important for federal law enforcement officers to conceal their identities. But here’s Bovino going out of his way to make a spectacle of himself. Why can’t the guys in full battle-rattle be as brave as he is and take their masks off?
Are Bovino’s military hand signals the most effective way to communicate with his staff on scene? Many of the Border Patrol officers are looking away from him and so would not see his orders or understand the tactical situation. Wouldn’t it have been more effective to communicate over the radio?
Also, why is Bovino giving the roll-out command? He’s an executive, not a platoon leader. When the POTUS or SecDef or any other senior officer is being moved by motorcade, the principal isn’t the one executing the logistics. It’s a division of labor. The senior guys focus on management and strategy. Their junior colleagues do things like taking notes, arranging transport, and, uh, videography.2
This entire scene was a performance piece. The question is: Who was this performance for?