Meet the man who defends ‘Obama’ from vandals

>>> you're about to meet a man named marcus davis , the owner of a popular diner in houston called the breakfast club . he's involved in a controversial involving murals painting on his walls depicting the president. the mural has been depicted to less than four times. the mural was first hit with paint spray in march 2010 . restored and hit again in october 2012 just before the election. undeterred, davis commissioned adams to paint a new look for the 2012 campaign. sure nenough, the mural was struck again in january. mr. davis , who by now had also installed a surveillance camera , was resolute. this time going even bigger with the art featuring the president with a child. and so this monday president's day, mr. davis sensing a similar attack on his property collared someone he thought was about to strike. the police arrived, everyone was interviewed. ultimately the damplt's offi.a.'s office declined to press charges. the story is not over yet. i'm delighted to say marcus davis joins us now from houston. good afternoon, sir.

>> good afternoon to you and thanks for having me on.

>> it's a great pleasure. do you believe that in this instance you thwarted someone who would have been the fifth vandal, the fifth time your property was vandalized?

>> i'm 100% certain. i had the liberty of watching the surveillance tape each time and on this instance i was able to identify the exact same behavior patterns as the last attack which was a gentleman riding up on a bicycle which was a gentleman standing out on the parking lot on his cell phone, and it was also a can of open paint sitting less than 12 inches away from the mural.

>> now, it does seem to us on this broadcast that in some ways your attempt to protect the mural of the president in the face of repeated vandalization is not a bad anal si. almost symbolic of the obama presidency where it doesn't matter if it's the governor of arizona shoving her fingers in the president's face or someone shouting offensively at the state of the union address . i mean, do you agree?

>> i agree. listen, martin, i tell people all the time that this mural is not the presidency but it is a symbol of president obama 's administration, and each day he gets up, he goes to work, and he's attacked. attacks from the left, attacked from the right, the middle, and he continues to work diligently. so my commitment is that each day that he gets up and goes to work, i will get up and i will fight and continue to have the mural restored as they continue to attempt to vandalize it.

>> i admire your resoluteness. to what lengths will you go to protect this work?

>> to what lengths will i go?

>> yes.

>> there's an endless supply of paint out there, and i will continue to commission reginald adams who i want to thank for being my partner in this event, and, you know, whatever lengths the president will go to make this nation great and to move this nation forward, i'm committed to continue that symbolism by maintaining this mural.

>> but thinking of your willingness to protect this mural, mr. davis , we also know that in addition to your support for the president, you support the first amendment and you also support the second amendment. and we have a picture of you with a weapon. i believe it's ana ar-15 over your shoulder. i have to ask you, would you consider using a weapon like that on someone who was prepared to deface a painting?

>> well, martin, in this instance, as in all of the incidents that i may encounter, my preference is to not have to use any violence, any guns, anything of that nature. this time we were able to apprehend, i was able to restrain the young man or the gentleman i should say by hand. and it is not my desire to bring violence into this world or into this city or into this nation, but it is in my opinion it is the right thing to do to defend myself. now, will i go above and beyond ? no, i won't go above and beyond but i will do the right thing to defend and protect my property. the first amendment talks about the right to property, the initial words of the constitution was the life, liberty, and the pursuit of property and a man has a right to own his property and to protect it according to the second amendment. and, no, but i do value human life , and, no, i don't believe that that's the length to which i will go if there are other measures that are in place.

>> well, thank you -- sorry, go ahead.

>> but the idea was that on the morning that the mural was vandalized and we found out, i was trying to make a point that it's possible to support someone and not agree with everything that they say or that they do or that they believe in. and in spite of me having a disagreement with president obama in his policy as a supporter, it doesn't mean i'm going to go out and deface or bring hazard or harm to my own property nor am i going to do it to someone else 's so how dare someone else decide they would do such a thing.

>> marcus davis --

>> there's no monolithic supporter.

>> marcus davis , we've run out of time, but thank you so much. i'd love to have breakfast at the breakfast club myself sometime.

>> soon. i got a plate of fish and grits for