WASHINGTON, DC- This week, Democrats, including White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki have laughably made the argument that despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, it is Republicans—not Democrats—who are pushing to defund the police.
This assertion came about as statistics have shown a record increase in all crimes, but especially violent crimes in Democrat-run cities. Democrats are clearly trying to deflect blame away from them.
Breitbart reports that the fantasy of Republican-advocated defund the police started on Sunday, when Biden advisor Cedric Richmond attempted to pin the blame for the defund the police mantra on Republicans while appearing on Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace.
“Let’s talk about who defunded the police. When we were in Congress last year trying to pass a rescue plan—I’m sorry not the rescue plan but an emergency relief plan for cities that were cash-strapped and laying off police and firefighters—it was the Republicans who objected to it.
And in fact, they didn’t get funding until the American Rescue Plan, which our plan allowed state and local governments to replenish their police departments and do the other things that are needed.
“So look, Republicans are very good at staying on talking points of who says defund the police, but the truth is, they defunded the police, we funded crime intervention, and a whole bunch of other things.”
Ironically, last year appearing on CBS News’ Face the Nation, Richmond said the “defund the police” mantra cost Democrats seats in November’s election.
Richmond should probably get his story straight.
This is of course absurd on its face. There are innumerable documented cases where Democrats talked about “defunding” or “reimagining” the police.
Also, the reason Republicans voted against the American Rescue Plan was the fact that the money directed to cities was being used to plug enormous deficits brought on by the cities through reckless spending.
Some of them, such as Chicago and Los Angeles had huge deficits due to unfunded pension obligations for public employee pensions.
One thing about Democrats is you know when they have received their talking points or marching orders because you hear it from the conga line of politicians and the mainstream media.
Such is the case with the sudden realization that it was the Republicans, not Democrats who have been parroting “defund the police” for over a year.
In a White House press conference on Monday, Fox News’ Peter Doocy asked Psaki about Richmond’s comments and whether she agreed with his assessment:
“Well, the president did mention that the American Rescue Plan, the state and local funding, something that was supported by the president, a lot of Democrats who supported and voted for the bill, could help ensure local cops were kept on the beat in communities across the country.
As you know, [it] didn’t receive a single Republican vote. That funding has been used to keep cops on the beat.”
A fact check easily found the comments by both Richmond and Psaki were lies.
“Although the White House did use the talking point that broad grants to localities could be used to help police departments and first responders, the American Rescue Plan did not include specific funding to hire more police officers,” Breitbart News said.
Yes, Democrats support defunding the police. pic.twitter.com/HHXgJPXw2m
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) June 29, 2021
What’s more, the facts are clear, that being that Democrats have been leading the charge in defunding the police for over a year and that has led to a significant increase in crime in America’s largest cities—all run by Democrats.
Here, in no particular order are the Democrat-run cities which have drastically gutted their police department budgets in the past year:
- New York: Last June, Mayor Bill de Blasio slashed $1 billion from the NYPD budget, despite a spike in shootings and other violent crime in the wake of Floyd’s death in Minneapolis and the related violent riots which broke out in the aftermath.
Recently, de Blasio redirected $92 million back to the NYPD to build a new precinct which was cut from last year’s budget. Between January 1 thru May 23 this year, there have been 531 shootings in the city, an increase from 295 during the same period last year, according to Breitbart.
- Philadelphia: Last year, the “City of Brotherly Love” slashed $33 million from the police department; in response the city is now “on pace to have one of its deadliest years on record,” according to NBC10 Philadelphia.
Philly is also home to Larry Krasner, one of the “progressive” neo-Marxist, soft-on-crime district attorneys who has turned the justice system in the city into a revolving door.
- Washington, DC: Last June, the DC city council said they would cut $15 million from the police budget. In May, the Washington Post said homicides in the city increased 38 percent compared to the same time period in 2020.
- Baltimore: Like it’s other Democrat-run counterparts, Baltimore cut $22 million from the police budget, according to the Baltimore Sun reporting last June, police commissioner Michael Harrison said he wanted to “see more boots on the ground,” and requested additional police department funding in light of the “surge in violent crime in cities across the country, as reported by The Hill.
- Los Angeles: Last year, mayor Eric Garcetti oversaw a $150 million cut in the LAPD budget last year; this year he’s seeking to restore $50 million of that, according to Breitbart, amidst a spike in crime in that city.
- Minneapolis: Last June 12, the Minneapolis city council voted unanimously to disband that city’s police department, as reported by Breitbart. Just over one year later, the city council voted to direct $5 million to pay for police overtime.
- “MPD was down to 632 active officers through the end of May. That’s a 25 percent drop from 845 police in 2020. As of last week, 60 officers are on disability leave,” according to CBS Minnesota.
“Deputy Chief Erick Fos told the committee that the number of gunshot victims has more than doubled from this point last year to this year, increasing from 116 to 259. Homicides have increased by 81 percent over the same time period.”
- Seattle: The Seattle city council last August approved measures to reduce the police department by around 100 officers, either through layoffs or attrition.
- Portland: Last June, city commissioners approved a cut of nearly $!6 million from the police budget. Appearing on NBC Nightly News this year, Daryl Turner, Executive Director of the Portland Police Association said that morale in the PPB is “as bad as it’s ever been,” even as the city is also seeing an explosion in violent crime.
Not only has Democrat-run cities’ support to “defund the police” been seen in how they are handling public safety funding, but also in their words:
- Joe Biden supported “reallocating police resources” during his campaign
- Kamala Harris said “I applaud Eric Garcetti” for defunding the LAPD, while saying “we have to reimagine public safety” as she discussed lowering police presence in communities
- Biden’s Associate Attorney General, Vanita Gupta said local officials need to “decrease police budgets and the scope, role, and responsibility of police in our lives.”
- Biden’s Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh, then mayor of Boston proposed a budget diverting funding from the Boston PD
- Biden’s Assistant Attorney General and critical race theory proponent Kristen Clarke wrote an op-ed for Newsweek last year supporting efforts to “defund the police.”
- Rep Val Demings (D-FL), ironically a former police officer called the decision of the Minneapolis City Council to “defund the police” “very thoughtful.”
- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and fellow House Democrats refused to criticize the Minneapolis City Council for defunding the police; Pelosi also referred to federal law enforcement officers assigned to protect the federal courthouse in Portland, Oregon as “stormtroopers.”
- Maxine Waters (D-CA) told protestors to “get more confrontational” with police
- Ilhan Omar (D-MN) called for dismantling the Minneapolis PD
- Cori Bush (D-MO) called to defund the police after she was elected to Congress
- House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC) compared federal law enforcement to Nazi Gestapo
Those are but a few examples of Democrats’ hue and cry to defund the police. An attempt was made to find a Republican member of Congress calling to defund the police, but none was found.
Even in the midst of a clear explosion of crime across the US, Democrats refuse to recognize what is occurring; a number of Democrats are still calling to defund the police, many despite the fact that they have themselves spent tens of thousands of dollars on their own security.
In fact, some of them, including members of the “squad” voted present during a vote a few months back, which would have resulted in the defeat of a $2 billion cut in security for the Capitol. That included Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA). Still they’re all for defunding the police for their voters.
Ocasio-Cortez continues calls to reallocate resources away from police and refers to concern over the current crime wave as “hysteria.”
Pressley meanwhile said she still supports defunding the police.
Meanwhile, the only member of the squad who (allegedly) has testosterone, Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) has demanded police be defunded even while requesting additional police protection for himself.
Unfortunately for Democrats, the internet is forever, and the truth is there for all to see. A majority of the American people know who supports the police and who does not. Democrats do not.
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