(Associated Press)
Five police officers died in Dallas on one terrible day a week ago. Now three more police officers are dead in Baton Rouge and another one is fighting for his life.
Don’t “Blue Lives Matter?” How many more cops have to die before politicians and the people unite and announce their full support for the police?
We’re not talking about half-measures, or weak support. We’re not talking about meaningless words, but rather strong, meaningful actions.
Back in the 1980’s the Newt Gingrich-led GOP created a "Contract with America." It swept the GOP into power.
Don’t “Blue Lives Matter?” How many more cops have to die before politicians and the people unite and announce their full support for the police?
Contracts are effective forms of communication. So we believe this is the perfect time for a new kind of contract with America- one that puts the full force of government behind “the thin blue line.”
This is a contract every politician in America should be willing to sign… And if they won’t sign, they have lost their way…and lost their mandate to lead.
Which national candidate will endorse this contract? Where does your candidate stand? Where do you stand? Here is the contract. Read it and decide.
THE LAW ENFORCEMENT CONTRACT WITH AMERICA
1. We stand in strong and unwavering support of law enforcement. PERIOD. Not lukewarm support, not support when things are going great. We stand in support of police when the going gets rough, when the chips are down.
2. We pledge to fight for legislation to protect families of fallen officers and those catastrophically disabled in the line of duty. Currently this support varies based on the jurisdiction and often is sorely insufficient. It is a sad reality that many families would be better off financially if their officer died in the line of duty, rather than becoming catastrophically disabled. In addition, there is no federal protection for the surviving spouse and children of a law enforcement officer who is killed in the line of duty, or disabled in the line of duty, as it concerns their medical coverage. This is a national disgrace and must be changed immediately. Legislation is needed to protect these men and women who have sacrificed so much for their communities.
3. We pledge to support The Law Enforcement Officers' Bill of Rights (LEOBR). This bill is intended to protect American law enforcement personnel from investigation and prosecution, arising from conduct during official performance of their duties, and provides them with privileges based on due process additional to those normally provided to other citizens. The need for a nationally recognized Police Officers Bill of Rights would serve as a protection for our nation's law enforcement officers.
4. We pledge to fight for more federal funding grants for police training. This is not the politically-correct "diversity and sensitivity training" being forced upon police departments across the USA by politicians like President Obama or New York City Mayor Bill DiBlasio. A special emphasis should be placed on “Officer Survival Training.” This should encompass not just physical survival, but emotional and psychological survival as well. PTSD takes a tremendous toll on American Law Enforcement, just as it does on the military.
5. We pledge to de-politicize and de-weaponize the United States Department of Justice against American Law Enforcement. The DOJ is an immense powerhouse that dramatically effects all aspects of Law Enforcement. The choice of an attorney general is a critical appointment that touches the lives of not only everyday Americans, but every single law enforcement officer in the nation. Unfortunately that position has been poisoned by politics under the administration of President Obama. Police officers across the country live in constant fear of becoming the next Darren Wilson -- the Ferguson, Missouri police officer whose only crime was to do his duty and defend his own life. Our politicians should pledge not to use the DOJ as a weapon to bludgeon police and achieve "social justice."
6. We pledge to pass legislation making The Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (aka LEOSA) enacted under the Bush administration, uniform across the USA. In essence, LEOSA is a federal law that allows retired Law Enforcement Officers the right to carry firearms concealed in any state without having to obtain a CCW Permit. Retired armed police and other law enforcement personnel are a huge backup force patrolling our streets- always armed and ready to defend the citizens...if they are allowed to do their job. This law is vital for not only the protection of those who have retired, but for the safety of Americans who face increasing risk of terror attacks and violent crime.
7. We pledge to declare war on cop killers. Targeting and hurting or killing police is a heinous crime. It tears at the fiber of society. It rises to a one-of-a-kind level of moral crisis. We believe these crimes should trigger unique penalties -- including the death penalty and recognition as a “hate crime.” If killing someone because they are black or gay merits special recognition and additional penalties added to the sentence, why shouldn’t killing someone because they are a police officer? If Blue Lives Matter, then targeting or killing police should reach the status of a hate crime.
8. We pledge to create a uniform minimum pay scale for law enforcement personnel across the USA. An officer was killed in the line of duty recently. At his time of death, he was making $12 per hour. These are trained professionals, whose job is to risk their lives for us. Shouldn't cops be paid appropriately for the risk, courage and heroism required for the job?
We are intensely interested to see where our political leaders and candidates stand on the simple, commonsense planks of this "Law Enforcement Contract with America." Because…
BLUE LIVES MATTER.
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