President Joe Biden made use of an executive order this past Wednesday to get around Congress and unilaterally slam down police reforms, throwing blame onto republicans who he claimed had “stood in the way of progress.”
“I’ve called on Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, but Senate Republicans have stood in the way of progress,” stated Biden in a tweet. “That’s why this afternoon, I’m taking action and signing an Executive Order that delivers the most significant police reform in decades.”
I’ve called on Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, but Senate Republicans have stood in the way of progress. That’s why this afternoon, I’m taking action and signing an Executive Order that delivers the most significant police reform in decades.
— President Biden (@POTUS) May 25, 2022
The White House made a spectacle of the event by streaming it, which made sure to include a series of remarks from Vice President Kamala Harris.
harris started out by stating her concerns for the families of the people who are currently grieving in the wake of Tuesday’s horrid shooting that took place in Robb Elementary School out in Uvalde, Texas, and then quickly pivoted, in the exact same manner as Biden had done in his address that went out the previous night, in order to go after the “gun lobby.”
“We must have the courage to stand up to the gun lobby and pass reasonable gun safety laws,” stated Harris just before swinging around to the topic of the current executive order at hand.
Happening Now: President Biden signs a historic Executive Order to advance effective, accountable policing and strengthen public safety. https://t.co/mQf2t5DGBt
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 25, 2022
Harris continued on to speak about the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, highlighting that it had passed the House under the leadership of Speaker Nancy Pelosi and then throwing blame at Republicans sitting in the Senate for not following along in their vote in favor of the entire package.
She went on to state that the order was not intended to bypass and overwrite any legislation, going on to state that there were still many more reforms that needed to be carried out that this order did not address.
Directly after Harris finished, Biden jumped up and again started his own statements with a direct attack against the gun lobby. He then reiterated the lie he has made in the past concerning the private ownership of cannons at the time the Second Amendment was written.
“The Second Amendment is not absolute,” exclaimed Biden. “When it was passed, you couldn’t own — you couldn’t own a cannon.”
Biden lauded the maneuver just after officially signing the order, highlighting some of the provisions that were set up. “I just signed an Executive Order that delivers the most significant police reform in decades. It will increase accountability, ban chokeholds, restrict no-knock entries, and more for federal law enforcement officers — and it incentivizes state and local officers to do the same.”
I just signed an Executive Order that delivers the most significant police reform in decades. It will increase accountability, ban chokeholds, restrict no-knock entries, and more for federal law enforcement officers — and it incentivizes state and local officers to do the same.
— President Biden (@POTUS) May 25, 2022