OPINION:
It is not uncommon to see politicians change their public positions to match the changing tides of public opinion. Today, we find ourselves witnessing the predictable softening of rhetoric from politicians who once ardently supported the “defund the police” movement, or the precepts upon which it was built.
These individuals are recasting themselves as supporters of law enforcement, aligning with those who see the police as a necessary force for maintaining public order and safety. As these politicians seek to court a broader base, we must scrutinize the depth of their commitment and whether their newfound allegiance to law enforcement stands on solid ground.
Much of the country continues to experience rising crime rates and increased social dysfunction, and the news reminds us of this reality with daily stories of indiscriminate violence affecting innocent citizens.
The city of Houston is no different. Despite recent trends suggesting a slight decrease in violent crime over the same time frame last year, cities such as Houston are still seeing crime that is far above pre-pandemic levels.
Although Houston is on pace to experience fewer homicides than the unconscionable 477 in 2021 and 435 it had in 2022, homicides remain a major problem in the city, as Houston is still on pace to significantly exceed the 291 homicides that occurred there in 2019.
This crime wave and the concern it has caused Houstonians happens to be occurring amid an active mayoral race. One candidate who only recently courted favor among the cacophony of voices advocating defunding the police would have voters believe that she is now firmly on the side of law enforcement. The voters of Houston should be wary.
Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, who is running for mayor of Houston, publicly declares on her campaign website that she has “delivered millions of dollars to the city’s police department.”
But that lofty rhetoric is undermined by her past comments on police funding as well as her associations with other public figures who have passionately advocated the noxiously inane idea that stripping local law enforcement of resources will somehow lead to less crime.
This juvenile notion presumes that the police are a root cause of crime, not the thin blue line between order and chaos that they truly represent.
In 2020, Ms. Jackson Lee proudly endorsed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, along with several of the most extreme progressive members of Congress. When asked if the bill would meet the “defund the police” demands of progressive activists, she replied: “I want them to know this bill answers their concerns. What I hear when they say defund [is], they want reprogrammed dollars.”
As recently as a few months ago, Ms. Jackson Lee campaigned for and endorsed then-candidate Brandon Johnson’s race for Chicago mayor, a contest he won. Mr. Johnson’s campaign focused on a slate of standard progressive positions, though nothing as disturbing as his yearslong commitment to defunding the police. As a Cook County commissioner in 2020, he sought to redirect funds from the police over to social services and claimed during his 2023 mayoral bid that his position on police funding hadn’t changed.
Though Ms. Jackson Lee, Mr. Johnson and other politicians may be loath to use the phrase “defund the police,” it is painfully obvious that redirecting funding away from law enforcement and toward other endeavors is a way to accomplish the same goal. Whether carried out under the guise of “reprogramming” or otherwise, this technique is merely defunding the police in more politically palatable terminology.
Is this the recipe for public safety that Ms. Jackson Lee seeks for Houston? Defunding the police by using terms like “reprogramming”? Or will she run contrary to her progressive political colleagues and proudly reject any attempts to “defund,” “reprogram,” or otherwise pull resources away from local law enforcement?
Communities need to support, empower, and provide adequate resources for their local law enforcement officers. Pursuing a rhetorically duplicitous campaign to strip law enforcement of resources when what they need is more support will only undermine public safety and endanger cities like Houston.
• Scott G. Erickson is a senior adviser to America First Works. Previously, he served as a senior official at the Department of Homeland Security and earlier in his career as a police officer in San Jose, California.
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