Americans Under Siege From Violent Crime Reject the Radical Left

U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding violent crime:

“This week, voters delivered a clear message to the Democratic Party: You were not elected to radically change America. Period.

“The message was clear on inflation and economics. The message was clear on keeping woke propaganda out of public schools. The message was clear when even the citizens of blue New York voted down left-wing changes to weaken elections.

“And the message was clear when citizens pushed back on anti-policing, anti-law-enforcement attitudes.

“Even in the most liberal cities in the most liberal states, Americans told Democrats to leave their extreme campaign to ‘defund the police’ behind.

“Take Minneapolis, for example. Last summer, one local Congresswoman called the police department ‘rotten to the root’ and insisted that, ‘no one is saying that the community is not going to be kept safe.’

“Now, homicides are on pace for the highest annual count in decades. So this week, Minneapolis voters rejected a ballot measure that would have removed the police department from the city’s charter.

“Or take New York City, where violent crimes like robbery and auto theft have seen ten to fifteen percent jumps over last year. This week, voters chose for their mayor a former police captain whose platform declared, ‘If we are for safety, we need the NYPD.’

“Up in Buffalo, New York, a socialist challenger had won a primary against the incumbent mayor, promising in part to defund the police. But even though prominent New York Democrats endorsed the radical, the incumbent won the race on a write-in.

“Our people have just lived through the biggest nationwide jump in homicides in more than a century. In my hometown of Louisville, murders in 2021 have already more than doubled the annual total from just two years ago.

“Americans do not want less public safety. They want more.

“No wonder that over the summer, one survey found that a majority of Americans – including majorities of Black and Hispanic respondents – called violent crime a ‘major crisis’… ahead of any other issue.

“But it remains to be seen whether Democrats here in Washington are getting the message.

“After all, just a few days ago, the Attorney General still seemed more focused on intimidating America’s parents out of their First Amendment rights.

“For the sake of public safety across our country, let’s hope that Tuesday’s results compel our friends across the aisle to come back into the mainstream.”