The House on Friday passed a resolution condemning “calls to defund the police,” taking aim at the rallying cry embraced by some progressives amid the Black Lives Matter movement.
The chamber approved the four-page measure in a vote of 337-61, with all opposition coming from Democrats, some of whom are members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.
The non-binding resolution — which Republicans brought to the floor as part of the Police Week legislative effort — condemns calls to defund the police that, the measure states, have “increased violence against law enforcement officers.”
It also “expresses condolences and solemn thanks” to the loved ones of law enforcement officials who have been killed in the line of duty, and recognizes the need for better data collection on officers who are assaulted, injured or disabled in the line of duty. duty, among other other provisions.
The “defund the police” resolution was one of several law enforcement-related measures that House GOP leadership introduced as part of Police Week. Republicans have sought to draw attention to crime, which has become a central issue in the 2024 election cycle and has emerged as a key weakness for President Biden as he seeks four more years in office.
“Under Joe Biden and failed leadership from the far left, the security of law enforcement in the United States has been sacrificed to the Democrats’ pro-crime agenda,” said Rep. Elise Stefanik (NY), chairwoman of the Republican Party conference in Chamber, on Wednesday. . “Lawless liberals prevent our police from doing their jobs with failed bail reform like my home state of New York and with pro-crime policies that appease far-left Democrats who defund the police agenda. ”
Several Democrats, however, criticized the Police Week proposals as messaging bills.
“Resolutions that mislead the public about violent crime rates, legislation that increases the availability of deadly weapons in our communities, and bills that stoke xenophobic and anti-immigrant sentiments do not make our communities safer – for our children, for our most vulnerable neighbors, to law enforcement, other first responders, or anyone else,” Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.) wrote in a declarationearlier this week.
The phrase “defund the police” was popularized in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement, especially after the murder of George Floyd in 2020. Black advocates argued that police departments were overfunded, allowing the over-policing of Black communities.
For many advocates, defunding the police would mean reinvesting city and state law enforcement funds in services like mental health services or other first responders.
But many who opposed the concept argued that the phrase — and supporters — demonized law enforcement. They have also expressed concerns that limiting police budgets would lead to the closure of police departments, although advocates have said they do not want police departments to be abolished.
Republicans have seized on the rallying cry since its popularity surged, with GOP lawmakers using it as a way to argue that Democrats are anti-law enforcement.
The House Democratic campaign arm, however, pointed out that the Republican Study Committee (RSC) – which is the largest conservative caucus in the lower chamber – presented a budget proposalin March, which called for reducing funding for the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program, the federal program that provides funding to various levels of law enforcement agencies.
“Conservatives support our men, women and blues, but they should question whether the government should be involved in state and local law enforcement, even if it is just a matter of funding,” the RSC budget says.
“The federal government should not bail out cities that intend to cut their police budgets, so the RSC budget would support a reduction in this program,” the budget adds.
Asked about this RSC budget provision on Wednesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) – a former RSC chairman – said “I have not looked at the details of the RSC budget” before shifting focus again. for Democrats.
“Many of the Democrats in the House are now trying to revise history and pretend and even say that they never supported defunding the police,” Johnson said.
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
