Political Quotes

“Madam Speaker, I rise today to oppose the previous question so we can amend the rule and immediately consider H.R. 7809, the Communities Deserve Cops Act, which allows for the use of COPS grants to provide officers with signing and retention bonuses up to $5,000. Predictably, Madam Speaker, we have seen shocking increases in violent crime following the calls from my friends across the aisle to defund the police. This week is National Police Week, a time when we should be honoring those who put their lives on the line every day to keep our communities safe. Sadly, we are not taking the opportunity to vote on legislation to bolster law enforcement and decrease violent crime. Despite House leadership having numerous bipartisan bills to vote on, only two bills have been added to the suspension calendar. The Senate Judiciary Committee is taking up five bills tomorrow. Representative Rutherford's legislation provides much-needed assistance for agencies to hire and retain officers. The COPS grant program is vital to law enforcement agencies of all sizes, but while it has continued to receive funds, it has not been authorized since 2009. I have also introduced a bill with Representative Spanberger that would reauthorize the COPS grant program and help low-income, rural agencies compete for these grants. It has 53 cosponsors on both sides of the aisle. More of my Democratic colleagues have cosponsored it than Republicans.…”