总统唐纳德·特朗普周一在白宫与执法人员的圆桌会议上发出了一个明确的信息:警察正在做一项“了不起的”工作。
“不会解散,不会解散我们的警察,也不会解散我们的警察,”他在下午的活动上说。
特朗普说:“我们想确保里面没有任何糟糕的演员,有时候,你会看到一些像我们最近看到的可怕的事情,但是99——我说99.9,但是让我们一起来看看,他们中的99%都是伟大的、伟大的人,他们做过创纪录的工作。”。
2020年6月8日,在白宫国家餐厅,唐纳德·特朗普总统在与执法官员的圆桌讨论中倾听。
2020年6月8日,在白宫国家餐厅,唐纳德·特朗普总统在与执法官员的圆桌讨论中倾听。
总统重申,该国目前的犯罪统计数据是“有记录以来我们拥有的最好的数字之一。”
“犯罪率下降是有原因的,因为我们执法力度很大。我为他们感到骄傲,”他补充道。
特朗普的评论被最高行政官员和六名外部参与者包围,其中包括来自佛罗里达州和肯塔基州的总检察长、警察兄弟会的国家主席、国际警察局长协会主席以及伊利诺伊州和科罗拉多州的警察部门代表。
司法部长威廉·巴尔说,联邦执法部门理解对刑事司法系统的不信任,并承认在美国历史的大部分时间里,这项法律是歧视性的。
巴尔说:“执法部门完全理解,并且已经理解了一段时间,非洲裔美国人社区对刑事司法系统的不信任。”他补充说,他对未来的改革“持乐观态度”。
2020年6月8日,司法部长威廉·巴尔在白宫国家餐厅聆听执法官员的圆桌讨论。
2020年6月8日,司法部长威廉·巴尔在白宫国家餐厅聆听执法官员的圆桌讨论。
继总统的高级顾问和女婿之后贾里德·库什纳说话时,特朗普称他为“我的明星”
库什纳说:“希望在这个时候,这个国家有很多人感受到不同的痛苦,感受到不同的担忧,执法部门可以成为领导者,团结起来,帮助我们努力找到解决方案,让这个国家向前发展。”。
在圆桌会议之前,明尼阿波利斯市议会周日宣布,鉴于弗洛伊德的死亡和警方行为的长期问题,将解散该市的警察部队。
2020年6月8日,在白宫国家餐厅,唐纳德·特朗普总统在与执法官员的圆桌讨论会上发言。
2020年6月8日,在白宫国家餐厅,唐纳德·特朗普总统在与执法官员的圆桌讨论会上发言。
“他们想结束警察部门——引用明尼阿波利斯警察部门的话——结束。这是什么意思?结束它,”特朗普说,并指出他在报纸上看到了报道。“他们放弃了他们的警察辖区,这是我从未见过的。你有一个要求他们放弃的市长,现在他们似乎已经放弃了市长。”
特朗普称之为“远思维的对立面”,但他表示,一旦他引入国民警卫队,“就像变魔术一样”
他表示,圆桌会议将继续讨论如何“以更温和的方式”执行警务
“但我们不能放弃最好的,世界上任何地方的执法都不像这样,”特朗普说。“所以我们将讨论一些想法、一些概念和一些事情,但我们不会解散我们的警察。
特朗普补充道,“我想你可能会有一些城市想要尝试,但这将是非常非常令人难过的情况。”
在与执法部门的圆桌讨论中,唐纳德·特朗普总统的两侧是肯塔基州司法部长丹尼尔·卡梅伦和美国警察兄弟会主席帕特里克·尤斯...更多
2020年6月8日,美国总统唐纳德·特朗普在白宫国家餐厅与执法部门举行的圆桌讨论会上,受到肯塔基州司法部长丹尼尔·卡梅伦和美国警察兄弟会主席帕特里克·尤斯的护卫。
随着国会开始规划警察改革的道路,周一下午,参议院多数党领袖麦康奈尔(McConnell)也否决了任何以额外的社会工作和精神健康项目来换取警察的提议,称此事“古怪”
“我完全支持社会工作和精神健康,”麦康奈尔说。“但请叫我老派吧,我想你可能真的想让一名警官在我们试图理清他的感受之前,阻止一名罪犯并逮捕他。”
众议院议长南希·佩洛西驳回了要求解散警察的呼声,但在周一早些时候与众议院民主党一起公布了一项全面的警务改革法案,旨在“与我们的警察部门合作”
“有许多人对他们的工作感到自豪,我们希望能够确保重点放在他们身上,”她表示,承认国会可以“重新平衡我们对警察在精神健康和学校治安方面的部分资金”。
在与执法部门的圆桌讨论中,唐纳德·特朗普总统的两侧是肯塔基州司法部长丹尼尔·卡梅伦和美国警察兄弟会主席帕特里克·尤斯...更多
2020年6月8日,美国总统唐纳德·特朗普在白宫国家餐厅与执法部门举行的圆桌讨论会上,受到肯塔基州司法部长丹尼尔·卡梅伦和美国警察兄弟会主席帕特里克·尤斯的护卫。
前副总统乔·拜登的竞选团队也反对越来越多的加入该运动,称他支持“迫切需要改革”
“正如几个月前他的刑事司法提案所表明的,副总统拜登不认为警察应该被解散。拜登竞选发言人安德鲁·贝茨(Andrew Bates)在周一发布的一份声明中写道:“他听到并分享了那些呼吁变革的人的深切悲痛和沮丧,并被驱使确保正义得到伸张,我们结束了这一可怕的痛苦。”。
在特朗普总统宣布圆桌会议开始前的几分钟,白宫新闻秘书凯雷·麦克纳尼(Kayleigh McEnany)在一次简报会上预览了特朗普的言论,称他被电话“吓坏”并指向民主党。
“这使我们的家庭和商业场所的保护层出现了倒退。他对此感到震惊。这对于民主党来说是非同寻常的,”麦克纳尼说。
美国广播公司新闻部的利比·凯茜对此报道做出了贡献。
Trump says no defunding, dismantling or disbanding of police
PresidentDonald Trumpon Monday sent a clear message during a White House roundtable with members of law enforcement: The police are doing a "fantastic" job.
"There won't be defunding, there won't be dismantling of our police and there is not going to be any disbanding of our police," he said at the afternoon event.
"We want to make sure we don't have any bad actors in there, and sometimes, you'll see some horrible things like we witnessed recently, but 99 -- I say 99.9, but let's go with 99% of them are great, great people, and they've done jobs that are record setting -- record setting," Trump said.
President Donald Trump listens during a roundtable discussion with law enforcement officials, June 8, 2020, in the State Dining Room of the White House.
President Donald Trump listens during a roundtable discussion with law enforcement officials, June 8, 2020, in the State Dining Room of the White House.
The president repeated that country's current crime statistics are "among the best numbers we’ve ever had in terms of recorded history."
"There's a reason for less crime, it's because we have great law enforcement. I'm very proud of them," he added.
Trump made the comments surrounded by top administration officials and half a dozen external participants that included attorneys general from Florida and Kentucky, the national president of the Fraternal Order of Police, the president of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and representatives of police departments in Illinois and Colorado.
Attorney General William Barr said federal law enforcement understands distrust of the criminal justice system and acknowledged that for most of U.S. history, the law was discriminatory.
"Law enforcement fully understands and has understood for some time, the distrust that exists in the African American community toward the criminal justice system," Barr said, adding that he is "optimistic" for future reforms.
Attorney General William Barr listens during a roundtable discussion with law enforcement officials, June 8, 2020, in the State Dining Room of the White House.
Attorney General William Barr listens during a roundtable discussion with law enforcement officials, June 8, 2020, in the State Dining Room of the White House.
After the president's senior adviser and son-in-lawJared Kushnerspoke, Trump called him "my star."
"Hopefully at this time, where there's a lot of people in the country who are feeling different pain and feeling different concerns, law enforcement can be a leader and coming together and helping us work towards bringing solutions that could bring this country forward," said Kushner.
The roundtable comes on the heels of Minneapolis City Council announcing Sunday that it would disband the city's police force in the wake of Floyd's death and long-standing issues with police conduct.
President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable discussion with law enforcement officials, June 8, 2020, in the State Dining Room of the White House.
President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable discussion with law enforcement officials, June 8, 2020, in the State Dining Room of the White House.
"They want to end the police department -- quote end the police department in Minneapolis -- end. What does that mean? End it," Trump said, noting he saw reports in the papers. "They abandoned their police precinct, something I've never seen before. You had a mayor that asked them to abandon, and now they've abandoned the mayor, it looks like."
Trump called it the "opposite of far thinking" but said once he brought in the National Guard "it was like magic."
He said the roundtable would continue to discuss how policing can be done "in a lot more gentle fashion."
"But we can't give up the finest, law enforcement anywhere in the world is nothing like it," Trump said. "So we're going to be discussing some ideas and some concepts and some things, but we won't be defunding our police.
Trump added, "I guess you might have some cities will want to try but it's going to be very, very sad situation."
President Donald Trump is flanked by Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron and Fraternal Order of Police National President Patrick Yoes during a roundtable discussion with law enforcement...more
President Donald Trump is flanked by Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron and Fraternal Order of Police National President Patrick Yoes during a roundtable discussion with law enforcement in the State Dining Room at the White House, June 8, 2020.
As Congress begins to chart a path forward on police reform, Majority Leader McConnell Monday afternoon on the Senate floor also swatted down the idea of any proposal that would defund police in exchange for additional social work and mental health programs, calling the matter "outlandish."
"I'm all for social work, and mental health," McConnell said. "But call me old fashion, I think you may actually want a police officer to stop a criminal and arrest him before we try to work through his feelings."
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has dismissed emerging calls to defund the police but unveiled with House Democrats earlier Monday a sweeping policing reform bill to "work with our police departments."
"There are many who take pride in their work and we want to be able to make sure that the focus is on them, she said, acknowledging Congress could "rebalance some of our funding" for police on mental health and policing in schools.
President Donald Trump is flanked by Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron and Fraternal Order of Police National President Patrick Yoes during a roundtable discussion with law enforcement...more
President Donald Trump is flanked by Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron and Fraternal Order of Police National President Patrick Yoes during a roundtable discussion with law enforcement in the State Dining Room at the White House, June 8, 2020.
Former Vice President Joe Biden's campaign also came out against the growing push to join the movement, saying instead he supports the "urgent need for reform."
"As his criminal justice proposal made clear months ago, Vice President Biden does not believe that police should be defunded. He hears and shares the deep grief and frustration of those calling out for change, and is driven to ensure that justice is done and that we put a stop to this terrible pain," Biden campaign spokesman Andrew Bates wrote in a statement released Monday.
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, in a briefing moments before President Trump opened up the roundtable to press, offered a preview of Trump's remarks, saying he was "appalled" by calls and pointed to Democrats.
"This is rolling back protective layers in our homes and places of business. He's appalled by it. It's remarkable from the Democratic party," McEnany said.
ABC News' Libby Cathey contributed to this report.