As Democrats in blue cities around the country push to “defund” their police departments after demonizing them for years in the face of dramatic increases in violent crime, GOP Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri is going in a different direction.
On Wednesday, the former state attorney general offered a 180-degree proposal to the ‘defund’ fanboys and fangirls: Provide funds for an additional 100,000 police officers across the country.
According to a statement from his office:
Ahead of President Biden’s Wednesday address on the spiking crime throughout America, Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) rolled out his own legislative agenda to hire 100,000 new police officers, boost police morale, and keep American families safe.
As violent crime continues to plague the country, communities and law enforcement officers are under siege. Homicides are dramatically increasing across American cities, and violent crime is hitting generational highs. Meanwhile, police departments are facing million-dollar budget cuts, violence against police officers is increasing nationwide, and low morale among officers is causing departments to struggle with recruiting new applicants.
“American families aren’t safe, but they deserve to be. And they can be if we will act. This is not the time to defund the police or vilify them, but to support the brave men and women in blue – and put more of them on the streets. Immediately,” Hawley said.
Here’s the proposal in a nutshell, via his office:
- 100,000 New Law Enforcement Officers: a bill to provide grants to local communities to support hiring an additional 100,000 additional law enforcement officers to protect American families.
- Protecting Law Enforcement in the Line of Duty: a bill to increase maximum penalties for assaulting federal officers by 50%.
- Protecting Federal Judges, Prosecutors, and Law Enforcement Officers from Violence and Doxing: a bill that directs DOJ, together with DHS, to develop programs to protect the privacy and personal information of judges, prosecutors, and law enforcement officials.
- Protecting Federal Law Enforcement Officers from Doxing: a bill to double the penalty for doxing federal law enforcement officials and other federal officials.
- Protecting Federal Courthouses and Judges: a bill to increase penalties for damage to federal courthouses and unauthorized access to areas where federal judges work, reside, or visit.
- Promoting Concealed Carry Rights for Law Enforcement Officers: a bill to amend the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (LEOSA) to extend concealed carry rights to federal judges and prosecutors.
- Further Expanding Support for Police Officers: a bill to expand Senator Hawley’s previously passed “Supporting and Treating Officers in Crisis Act of 2019,” by increasing funding for family services, stress reduction, suicide prevention, and other programs for federal officers.
- Protecting Law Enforcement from Targeting: a bill to create a separate criminal offense for targeting someone based on their status as a law enforcement officer.
- Protecting Law Enforcement from Ambush: a bill to increase criminal penalties for ambushing enforcement officers.
“Violent crime is surging across the country. Our families need protection. Our cops need support. We should raise officers’ pay and put 100,000 new cops on the beat,” he noted on Twitter.
These are all great ideas, and the only one we would add is this: Pressure Democratic leaders, prosecutors, and city officials to stop demonizing their officers and throwing them under the bus every time they have to defend themselves.
Maybe putting more people behind bars for crimes they are guilty of committing would help reduce the need for officers to defend themselves.
