Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke salutes the crowd prior to delivering a speech on the first day of the Republican National Convention on July 18, 2016 at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. View Full Caption Alex Wong/Getty Images

MANHATTAN — The city’s largest NYPD union has chosen the sheriff of Milwaukee County — who is an outspoken “Black Lives Matter” critic — as their “Person of the Year” to address their 2016 convention upstate next week, DNAinfo New York has learned.

By selecting Sheriff David Clarke, the tough-talking, politically conservative Midwest lawman, the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association has taken the unusual step of honoring someone outside of the New York City law enforcement or political scene.

"Sheriff Clarke is a passionate and vocal defender of police officers, at a time when our job is more difficult and dangerous than ever before,” said Patrick Lynch, the PBA president.

“That is exactly what the PBA does for New York City police officers, so it has been encouraging to hear Sheriff Clarke make the same case on a national stage,” he added. “We should be hearing that type of support from elected leaders in both parties and at all levels of government, and are honored to have Sheriff Clarke as our Person of the Year."

Clarke has been a critic of politicians with what he describes as left-leaning policies that have contributed to lawlessness, urban blight, and disrespect for police across the country.

A frequent television guest and pundit, Clarke has been among the harshest critics of the “Black Lives Matters” movement, calling it a racist organization comprised of “subhuman creeps” who use “vulgar, vile, and vicious rhetoric,” according to news reports, that fuels anti-police sentiments and leads to killings of police, including the executions of NYPD officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu in December 2014.

A registered Democrat who has served as Milwaukee sheriff for 14 years, Clarke sports cowboy hats and boots, and supports Donald Trump’s presidential bid.

The PBA convention is largely attended by its union leaders and delegates from around the city’s various precincts, and takes place over three days starting next Wednesday.