Mothers Against Drunk Driving is furious with New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio for comments he made in a television interview Sunday calling drunk driving a minor offense.
De Blasio had told CNN host Jake Tapper on "State of the Union" that drunk driving is a minor offense during a discussion on sanctuary cities, leading MADD officials to issue a statement on Monday rebuking the mayor, the New York Daily News reported.
Richard Mallow, the New York state director for MADD, released the statement.
"There is nothing minor when drunk driving kills or injures 300,000 people every year," Mallow said. "Drunk driving is always a major offense and we should never minimize the impact it has on families and victims."
The MADD rebuke was a response to comments de Blasio made the prior day, when he and Tapper discussed how New York shields illegal immigrants who commit "lesser offenses" from federal authorities.
De Blasio explained that there are over 170 offenses considered serious or violent crimes that lead the city to cooperate with the federal government, noting that minor offenses should not warrant deportation.
"Is grand larceny or drunk driving a very minor offense," Tapper asked.
"Drunk driving that does not lead to any other negative outcome I could define as that," de Blasio responded. "If anyone does a serious crime, I agree, they shouldn't be here."