Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) is criticizing President Trump’s decision to reopen military gear to local police forces.
The Trump administration and Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced on Monday an executive order to President Obama’s 2015 ban on the 1033 Pentagon program, which allowed local and state police to arm themselves with military equipment.
Paul, who also spoke against police militarization in 2014 after the shooting of Michael Brown and the Ferguson protests, said the reversal infringes upon the liberties of Americans, calling any feelings of security the move might bring “dangerous” and “false.” The junior senator announced the introduction of legislation that would limit the sale of military equipment to local and state law enforcement.
“It is one thing for federal officials to work with local authorities to reduce or solve crime,” Paul said, “but it is another for them to subsidize militarization.”
“Any order that comes today still needs to be funded, and I will bring this issue to the Senate floor, including through reintroducing my Stop Militarizing Our Law Enforcement Act,” he added.
Senator Paul’s legislation seeks to prohibit “the federal transfer of militarized equipment to state and local law enforcement agencies, including Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles, drones and armored vehicles.”
The prohibition would only apply to offensive equipment and would not “prohibit the transfer of defensive equipment, such as body armor.”
The legislation also orders the return of any equipment prohibited under the bill and would increase accountability by requiring the Defense Logistics Agency to “create a website that displays all of the property transferred under the 1033 program, as well as the state and local agencies who have received the equipment.”
Paul concluded by saying he will continue to fight for civil liberties and criminal justice reform.
I tend to agree with Sen. Paul on this.
For a sick ironic twist see this: http://feeltheliberty.com/suicidal-veteran-shot-and-killed-by-police/
That military surplus defensive equipment is gonna be needed by many police departments as Antifa forces grow and become more and more violent.
See post here… “Patriots are caught in a trap”
For the umpteenth time-
Invite.Soros.To.Appear.Under.Oath.In.Front.Of.A.Congressional.Committee.
You ignorantly assume that they will be the targets or that the police will discontinue using these offensive weapons once the Antifa problem is gone. The worthless, failed, immoral war on drugs was the excuse used for the sales in the first place. Sorry, wrong answer.
I’d like to see this guy charge into a marauding ANTIFA mob while armed only with
a feather duster. He’d learn the facts of life but fast.
Hey Anon and Figaro, You guys are asleep dumbfuckers, The police don’t need military equipment to handle communist faggots like antifa. Also the police would never be unleashed on antifa because they are the side backed by the government. Wake up and smell the coffee.
Yours in Odin
Diogenes
In spite of Trump, the D’s still haven’t figured out that the power YOUR guy is given to wield against YOUR favorite enemy is the same power that will be used against YOU later on.
People who follow this blog should be smart enough to understand that, but apparently some are not.