The war between New York city police and Mayor Bill de Blasio ratcheted up a notch yesterday when anonymous donors – assumed to be current and retired police officers – flew a banner from a plane that traveled up the Hudson River and read “DE BLASIO, OUR BACKS HAVE TURNED TO YOU,” referencing a gesture of dozens of cops at the hospital where the two officers died.  When de Blasio showed up to conduct a press conference, the officers turned their backs on him as he walked a gauntlet of police.

New York Daily News:

Former cop John Cardillo said a “large and unified group of current and retired NYC police officers, detectives and supervisors” asked him to post a lengthy statement on his blog about the plane once it was visible over the city shortly before 9 a.m.

“We are outraged by the mayor’s incendiary rhetoric and for facilitating the current hostile climate towards the NYPD,” the blistering statement said. “We understand that the department and even our own unions can only go so far in their public condemnation of the mayor as to not irreparably damage the working relationship with the city, or future contract negotiations.”

It went on to point a finger at the mayor for a comment he made earlier this month about telling his biracial son Dante to “take special care in any encounter he has with police officers.”

“It is our opinion that Mayor de Blasio’s dangerous and irresponsible comments about his and his wife’s concern for their son’s safety at the hands of the NYPD fueled the flames that led to civil unrest, and potentially to the deaths of P.O. Wenjian Liu and P.O. Rafael Ramos, as well as the continued threats against NYPD personnel,” the statement read.

Many cops are angry with de Blasio for meeting with anti-police protesters and for not backing the force more strongly after a grand jury refused to indict Officer Daniel Pantaleo in the chokehold death of Eric Garner on Staten Island.

A spokesman for the mayor avoided hitting back at the banner message. “This is a time to think about the families and honor our fallen officers,” said mayoral spokesman Wiley Norvell. “Dividing people won’t help our city heal. We’ll continue to stand with responsible New Yorkers who are doing the right thing in a time of pain.”

Cardillo told the Daily News a group of “about a few hundred cops” — current and retired — contacted him three days ago, wanting to make a statement that went beyond the constraints of what their union leaders might say.

The animus of the cops directed against de Blasio goes all the way back to the campaign where candidate de Blasio heavily criticized the police for the "stop and frisk" strategy, saying that it involved racial profiling.  This ad is only the latest salvo from the police, who feel that de Blasio, quite simply, doesn't have their back.

It's hard to see this rift healing any time soon.