Political Quotes

“a few years ago, a police officer in Pueblo, CO, was kind enough to let me join him in a squad car for a few hours to get a sense of what his daily beat was like. It was in the middle of the night. It didn't take very long to appreciate that our country asks law enforcement to do a lot more than simply enforce the law. Washington has underinvested in the American people year after year after year in areas like housing, education, and mental health. It has left law enforcement to pick up the pieces. It has put them in a position wherein they are not only having to serve as law enforcement officers but also as social workers, as mental health professionals, and as responders for issues like homelessness or drug addiction, even though nobody has trained them for it necessarily. That result has been really tough for officers on the ground in Colorado and across the country. It strains their resources, adds to the workload, and accelerates burnout. It has also been hard for communities. It diverts law enforcement from violent crime, and it means we are forcing officers to address mental health issues and problems instead of dealing with the underlying issues that produce many 9-1-1 calls in the first place. I am sad to say that all of these underlying issues that everybody is familiar with have gotten worse during the pandemic. It is one reason there has been a spike in crime that started in 2020, before the current administration, and it has continued ever since.…”