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NATIONAL POLICE WEEK
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Joyce) for 5 minutes.
Mr. JOYCE of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, equal justice under the law is a cornerstone of our American democracy. At home in Pennsylvania and around our country, our communities are blessed with dedicated law enforcement officers who work daily to protect and to serve. During National Police Week, the American people honor and thank the law enforcement officers who keep us safe each and every day.
While no organization is perfect, our local police work hard to uphold the law and maintain peace in our communities. As Chambersburg Police Chief Ron Camacho told me just this week, good police forces are centered on protecting and learning how to protect better. He said that good police forces are constantly evolving and improving.
I wholeheartedly agree with my friend, the chief of police in Chambersburg, and Congress must do our part to support these heroes. Instead of talking about defunding the police, we should be working to better train and equip law enforcement officers to do the job that we have entrusted them to do.
As we move forward, the American people know that Republicans are leading commonsense, bipartisan solutions. For over a year, Senator Tim Scott and Congressman Pete Stauber have led our efforts to improve transparency, accountability, and training. Rather than defund or dismantle the police, the Justice Act will enact bipartisan reforms to better equip these brave Americans who serve our communities. I was proud to cosponsor that legislation, and I encourage my colleagues on all sides of the political spectrum to join us in this commonsense approach.
Democrats say that they want to work together on police reform. Now is the chance. Getting this right today is critical for the future of policing in our Nation. We cannot allow the radical left to erode trust in the justice system and degrade the good name of the public servants for the sake of their own woke agenda. Right now, our law enforcement community is facing unprecedented attacks. Every day, the left threatens to abandon these heroes who protect us.
Chief Camacho leads an exemplary police force in Franklin County, Pennsylvania. He and the vast majority of the law enforcement community go above and beyond to protect our communities.
As a nation, we must never turn our backs on the police. We must never defund the police. During National Police Week and throughout this year, it is my privilege to stand with the thin blue line, and I will always back the blue.
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SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 167, No. 82
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