Seattle police union leader pleads for help to stop defund police movement
Seattle Police Officers Guild President Mike Solan reacts to federal law enforcement agents leaving Seattle after being sent there to tamp down protests on ‘America’s Newsroom.’
Like millions of moms in my state of Michigan and all across America, there is nothing I want more for my children than for them to safely return to school this fall.
This pandemic has brought a hard dose of humility to millions of parents who are having a hard time adding “teacher” to an already overcrowded list of parental duties.
As schools start to announce their plans for the upcoming academic year, we worry about the negative long-term impact if our kids are kept out of the classroom much longer.
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We all know that teachers and our schools provide our children with much more than a good education – they serve as a foundation for developing social and emotional skills. We also know that many of our nation’s children rely on school as a source for meals and other important resources like counseling and after-school programs.
Conversely, we know there are social costs and emotional costs to students being out of school and that when the support schools provide are absent, a cascade of negative consequences like increased cases of child abuse follows.
That’s why everyone from the Centers for Disease Control to Dr. Anthony Fauci to the American Academy of Pediatrics agree on the importance of getting students safely back into the classroom and a return to in-person learning this fall.
Unfortunately, while President Trump and his administration have been laser-focused on getting students back to school safely and are working with governors and local officials to make it a reality, they have been met with nothing but resistance from the radical left, who want to keep kids out of school indefinitely.
This despite the fact that a recent Associated Press poll found nearly 70 percent of Americans believe schools should open for in-person instruction this fall or that all the evidence to date shows that schools don’t act as spreaders for the coronavirus.
Perhaps as concerning as Democrats’ refusal to engage in meaningful discussions on safely reopening our schools, however, are their newfound plans to cancel contracts between police and the schools they serve.
In other words, Democrats not only want to keep our schools closed and defund the police, they also want to remove police from our schools.
And in recent days and weeks, we have seen that very scenario play out as school boards in places like Minneapolis, San Francisco and Seattle, to name a few, have severed ties with their city’s police departments.
It’s all part and parcel to Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders’ radical push to “reimagine policing.”
Unfortunately, we don’t have to imagine what policing, whether in our streets or schools, would look like in Joe Biden’s America – we are already seeing it play out in places like Portland, Ore.
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As anarchists lay waste to their own city and assault federal officers, Biden is out there defending the radical rioters, dismissing the violent attacks as “peaceful protests.”
Americans of all political affiliations are understandably concerned about this kind of rhetoric coming from the top of the Democratic ticket and proposals like canceling police contracts in school.
Parents I know and talk to tell me they would worry more for their sons’ and daughters’ safety if the security police provide in schools is no longer there, and they likewise wonder if we take police out of our schools, what’s next?
Biden himself has called for redirecting funding away from the police, and those in the left-wing mob controlling Biden’s candidacy like Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., have called for downright doing away with police departments.
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The National Association of Police Organization’s recent endorsement of President Trump, after previously backing Biden in 2008 and 2012, shows just how far Biden has lurched to left on issue after issue, including public safety.
As we rapidly approach the November election, it’s vital to remember that Joe Biden’s policies will make our communities less safe.
And because “all politics is local,” it’s also a reminder to take note of your local elected officials who are making decisions about your children’s’ school.
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If you aren’t comfortable with reduced safety in our schools or the kind of chaos we are all seeing unfold in cities across the country, then it’s imperative to go out and vote on Nov. 3.
To vote for Republicans at all levels who will support our police officers and stand up for the rule of law, including the only presidential candidate who will keep us safe, President Donald J. Trump.
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