U.S. Navy Veteran Lendon Bendix of Florida said his “Trump 2020” flag was stolen over the weekend and said on “Fox & Friends First” on Thursday that he never could have "dreamed" it would happen.
“To have something like this happen is just crazy,” he added.
Sheriff’s deputies in Florida are investigating after surveillance video captured two people walking up to the flag pole on Bendix’s front yard, Fox 35 reported, adding that the people are seen grabbing the flag and pulling on it. Once the suspects grab the flag, they are seen on video running away.
“I felt violated,” Bendix said on “Fox & Friends First” on Thursday.
“I served our country. I have two sons that are serving our country right now. And I flew those flags in the beginning because there were people who were afraid to voice their support for President Trump, so I raised those flags about nine months ago.”
He said about three months later, his neighbors started raising flags showing support for Trump as well.
“I felt since I own that property, in which I do own that property and I pay taxes on the property, I have a right to express my opinion and that’s exactly what I did and my neighbors felt the same way so when the flag was stolen, I felt absolutely violated,” Bendix said.
“I felt like everything that I had served and fought for and sacrificed for was basically trying to be deprived or taken from me.”
Bendix said he had received strong reactions from people passing by his flags before--in fact, he said that during his local Fox interview about the theft, someone drove by and yelled “vulgarities” about Trump.
The Trump supporter said on “Fox & Friends First” that despite the theft, he is planning on adding even more flags.
“I think what they’re [the thieves are] trying to do, is they're trying to intimidate me or basically oppress my opinion, my personal opinion and my perspective,” he said.
He added that he has seen “some strange things in the combat zone and I promise you, they’re not going to intimidate me.”
He went on to say that he’s “going to fight for my right to speak.”
“I’m going to stick up more flags, put them up and hopefully show my support for our president,” Bendix said on Thursday morning. “I believe our president truly loves our military, I believe he loves our country and I am going to show support for that and I’m not going to be intimidated or forced to stop doing that.”
The two people in the video have not yet been identified, according to Fox 35.
“Folks who are afraid to put up their Trump flags, they shouldn’t be. I mean, if you’re afraid of it then have courage. Courage is controlled fear. Stand up against intimidation and oppression,” Bendix said.
“It’s ridiculous. These behaviors are unacceptable. You have a right to your opinion, if you differ from my opinion that’s great, however, you need to control your behavior because if you don’t, law enforcement will.”
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