Rep. Cleaver reacts to protesters calling to defund police: ‘Nightmare of an idea’
Missouri Democrat Rep. Emanuel Cleaver joins Dana Perino on ‘The Daily Briefing.’
Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Mo., claimed on "The Daily Briefing" Wednesday that the "defund the police" slogan is not a call to deprive law enforcement of money, telling host Dana Perino that "nobody with an IQ at room temperature wants to shut down the police department."
"This is a spine-chilling and nightmarish name for a masterful idea, 'defund the police,'" Cleaver said. "I wish we could get rid of that title. What I think most people are supporting is the reengineering of police."
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Establishment Democrats and and left-wing progressives have debated the precise meaning of “defund the police." Some, like Cleaver, argue the phrase shouldn’t be taken literally, but should be considered a catch-all to describe needed police reforms.
Cleaver then told Perino about a situation involving a white friend whose son struggled with schizophrenia. One day, Cleaver's friend called the police for help as his son brandished a knife in the man's front yard.
"It all ended in his son being shot, I think, 13 times in the front yard," Cleaver said, making the point that most "thoughtful people" are calling for a "unit of the police department that is trained in how to deal with those issues."
Some Democrats disagree with Cleaver, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.
“Defunding police means defunding police. It does not mean budget tricks or funny math. It does not mean moving school police officers from the NYPD budget to the Department of Education’s budget so the exact same police remain in schools,” the congresswoman said in a statement Tuesday during negotiations between the New York City Council and Mayor Bill de Blasio to cut $1 billion from the NYPD’s $6 billion budget.
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"What I'm hoping we can stop doing is exaggerating people's positions who are seemingly on another side of the issue," Cleaver told Perino Wednesday. "But I don't know anybody who wants to say we don't need the police and let's take the money and put it into the Kansas City Chiefs organization or something. Change is uncomfortable, even change from bad to good is uncomfortable. But nothing is as uncomfortable as it remains stuck in the mud."
"This is an excellent opportunity for us to change and change for the better," Cleaver added. "I want police and I want good police."
Fox News' Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.
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