Today at the Rose Garden in which it can be called a de facto Blue Lives Matter rally, Donald Trump (R) signed a milquetoast executive order on “police reform”, which are weaker than previous President Barack Obama (D)’s fairly mild police reform plans. The EO will institute a national database for officers accused of misconduct (esp. excessive force), continues to permit chokeholds in certain circumstances, and new programs for law enforcement to deal with mental health issues.
His “presser” later veered away from the topic into other topics, including his downplaying the scope of COVID-19 and advocacy for school choice.
John Haltiwanger and Eliza Relman at Business Insider:
President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order on policing that does not address the demands of activists who've flooded America's streets, and does not go nearly as far as legislation proposed by Democrats and Republicans in Congress.
As Americans demonstrate against the use of excessive force by police, the president showered law enforcement with praise and called for more "law and order" in the US. Trump's executive order is primarily concerned with not demonizing police officers.
"We will have reform without undermining our great police officers," Trump said in announcing the executive order on Tuesday. "Americans want law and order. They demand law and order. They may not say it, they may not be talking about it, but that's what they want. Some of them don't even know that that's what they want. But that's what they want."
"Without police, there is chaos," he added.
With protesters around the country pressing their fight against police brutality and racism, President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order aimed at tracking misconduct by law enforcers and creating incentives for departments to improve their practices.
The president, during a speech in the White House Rose Garden that heaped praise on the police and took time to attack his political opponents, said before signing the order that it will ban the use of police chokeholds “except if the officer’s life is at risk.
Despite the executive order, Trump made clear in his Rose Garden remarks that he is still a "law and order" president:
- "We have to find common ground. But I strongly oppose the radical and dangerous efforts to defund, dismantle and dissolve our police departments, especially now when we achieved the lowest recorded crime rates in recent history," he said.
- The president said there are a “small number of bad police officers...They are very tiny. I use the word ‘tiny.’ It is a very small percentage. But you have them.”
The big picture: Under the order, police departments that meet certain standards, outlined by the Justice Department, on use of force will be given access to federal grants, a senior administration official said on a call with reporters on Monday.
- Departments must ban the use of chokeholds to receive such certification, unless an officer is targeted by deadly force.
- The order also moves to create a national registry to track police officers with multiple instances of the use of excessive force.
- The order also includes new programs that would help law enforcement officials better deal with mental illness, homelessness, and addiction — including encouraging departments to involve mental health professionals and social workers to work alongside officers in the field.
Worth noting: The order does not address larger concerns about systemic racism and racial profiling in law enforcement.
- "I strongly oppose the radical and dangerous efforts to defund, dismantle and dissolve our police departments. ... Americans know the truth: Without police, there is chaos. Without law, there is anarchy," Trump said.
Former San Antonio Mayor and 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Julián Castro said it best: the EO is nothing more than cosmetic window dressing, when more drastic reforms are needed.