Amid several controversial police shootings, the nation is having some conversations about police reform in the United States.
Some of the most extreme Democrats such as Reps. Rashida Tlaib and Maxine Waters have called for the all-out abolition of police.
However, President Biden has distanced himself from this rhetoric, as have some other Democrats. The Democrats who are not supportive of abolishing police in the U.S. are instead stating that there’s a need for substantial police reform.
Earlier today, Rep. Karen Bass, a Democrat, indicated that there may be bipartisan support in the works for police reform, per Breitbart News.
Could Bipartisan Police Reform be on the Way?
During Rep. Bass’ CNN interview this morning, she spoke about her work with a bipartisan group of lawmakers, including GOP. Sen. Tim Scott.
According to Bass, Sen. Scott is an “honest broker” and a key player in getting police reform passed. The Democrat lawmaker then stated that the bipartisan group is working to win over a supermajority in the Senate so that police reform legislation passes without any issues.
Rep. Karen Bass on police reform: "All communities deserve to be protected and served by law enforcement and you shouldn't have law enforcement that protects and serves one community and acts as though they're in a war zone in another community … that's what we have." #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/0yRGZvHrge
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) April 18, 2021
Interestingly enough, Bass also had some kind words about Republican lawmakers. The Democrat stated that GOP lawmakers are working in “good faith” on getting police reform passed. Finally, Bass acknowledged that getting reform through the Senate is harder than passing it through the House of Representatives.
Getting the supermajority vote in the Senate will require 60 members on board. This means that a bare minimum of ten GOP senators will have to support the police reform legislation that is currently in the works.
The Biden Administration on Police Reform
Last week, the White House indicated that President Biden very much looks forward to signing police reform into law. This information arrived at the same time that the White House confirmed that Biden does not support abolishing law enforcement in the United States.
You filibustered Tim Scott’s police reform bill. https://t.co/1cPHjwvIZz
— TheRightWingM 🇺🇸 (@TheRightWingM) April 16, 2021
If lawmakers do manage to pass a bipartisan police reform bill, there is a strong likelihood that President Biden would sign it into law. It would also be the very first bipartisan bill to emerge from Congress since Biden’s presidency began.
Do you think Republicans and Democrats in Congress will manage to come together on police reform? Do you think President Biden would sign a bipartisan police reform bill into law? Share your thoughts with us about this down below in the comments section.
