Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., is blasting calls to defund police in the wake of nationwide protests.
Zeldin made his comments in a column posted by Fox News on Friday.
He wrote: “This seems to be the ideal world for those who have bypassed the need for real debate and taken to the streets — not to exercise their right to peacefully protest for positive change, but to demand we 'defund,' 'abolish,' 'disband' or 'dismantle' the police.
“Unfortunately for them, everyday Americans have gotten their first taste of this experiment and the lawlessness that has come with it — including rioting, looting, arson, assaults, homicides and more."
He noted a group of protesters took over a six-block area of Seattle a little over two weeks ago and declared it a no-police zone.
“This is the dream of proponents of defunding the police, who claim community policing can replace the police forces that have protected us for generations,” Zeldin said. “Unfortunately for too many involved, this fairytale did not end happily ever after.
“The Seattle police chief stated that the number of 911 calls related to robberies and assaults from the area now known as the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest (CHOP) had tripled since the start of the occupation.”
Zeldin acknowledged there is room for improvements that “can help protect both our police officers and the citizens they serve.”
He added: “But this message has been hijacked by the radical agenda to defund the police. The American people have had a test drive, and they’re not buying it.”
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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