Most of our cities saw a dramatic rise in crime last year that appears unabated this year. Is the “defund the police” movement to blame? After all, some of the cities with the worst spikes have adopted that philosophy and made cuts to their police departments. The answer is more complicated than that, but that...
As the crime rates soar in our major cities, some jurisdictions are reconsidering their early devotion to defunding the police. The anti-police rhetoric, symbolic and real “reform” initiatives, and a complete lack of support for our police officers have all had exactly the effect that everyone knew they would. The decades-long trend of declining violent...
Coverage of the disturbing events of Jan. 6 has given us a glimpse of just how differently the left and the right are treated in the media. Americans on both the left and the right watched in disbelief and horror as a mob overran Capitol Police and invaded the Capitol building. One protestor was shot...
The death of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25 sparked nationwide protests, riots, calls for reforms, calls for defunding the police, and an array of legislation or proposed legislation. There was bipartisan interest in policing issues, whether it was called reform or improvement. Sadly, the bipartisanship was very short-lived and for the most part,...
Even if we believed that “feel-good” police reform measures from the Left had the best of intentions (I do not), the fact would remain that most of its proposals are wrongheaded and dangerous. The Washington, D.C., City Council adopted measures apparently aimed at making its leftist base feel good; now, let’s see how it reacts when the...
It comes as no surprise former Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Kamala Harris are campaigning on promises “to end our gun-violence epidemic.” The leftward drift of the Democratic Party on most policy questions, including lawful firearm ownership, has been made explicit in its 2020 party platform. The presidential nominee’s campaign “issues page” takes it several...
The death of a police officer in the line of duty affects every other officer—and everyone else who has ever been one. Cops do not allow their brothers and sisters to die in vain; we honor them by learning from their deaths, by ensuring that others may live through their ultimate sacrifice. Thank God the two...
There are competing goals in the rioting and protesting we see all over the country. The prevailing narrative remains the peaceful expression of outrage against perceived injustices committed by the police. However, it has become clear that protests have been hijacked by those whose intent is anything but peaceful. Some media networks are desperate to cling to...
Recent events have highlighted calls for policing reform nationwide, from both conservatives and liberals. At first glance, this sounds like a rare moment of bipartisan agreement. Unfortunately it is not. Both sides approach the concept of policing differently and share very little in terms of how it needs to be reformed. Conservatives are not new to the idea...
It is often difficult to look at any specific example of a poorly executed police action and say with certainty that the failure was caused by poor training. There are too many variables at play to limit the failure to any one thing, but if there is one thing that can be looked at it would be the...
Back the Blue — Sign the Pledge, Click Here. More than three centuries ago, British writer Jonathan Swift observed, “Falsehood flies, and the Truth comes limping after it; so that when Men come to be undeceiv’d, it is too late.” Well, a new movement to defund the police is well on its way. And in...
We don’t have all of the details on the shooting of Atatiana Jefferson in her home by a Fort Worth police officer, and much of what we don’t know might have to wait for the trial of the officer. But what we do know supports a robust defense of the Second Amendment — we all...