Recognizing Law Enforcement Officers Across the Country

Floor Speech

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Mr. CLOUD. Mr. Speaker, who would have thought--who would have thought--that today we would be here discussing this topic.

When I ran for office, when I stood in this room for the first time and took the oath of office to protect and defend the Constitution, I expected that we would have many discussions on this floor with deeply held opposing views on the many issues facing our Nation. I did not expect that one of those issues would be whether this, the lawmaking body of our Nation, expects the laws to be followed, or whether or not we support the brave men and women tasked with enforcing that law.

Policing is a noble and necessary profession of any civil society, a profession which, by and large, is full of dedicated, courageous citizens who have chosen to serve their community, often putting aside higher-paying professions to work in one of the most difficult, challenging jobs, daily prioritizing public safety over their own.

It is these families for whom the greatest sound one hears is the sound of Velcro at the end of each shift as their loved one removes their body armor and takes up their other most important duty of being a mom, dad, brother, or sister. For too many of our law enforcement officers' families, because of the violence against police, they are now denied the joy of that moment.

Each day, we see images of organized armed riots embracing lawlessness, destroying property, sowing hate, and instilling fear, all in order to advance a political agenda.

The barrage of destruction and violence in major American cities is almost nonstop. The rioters across the Nation have cost over $1 billion in damages and claimed numerous lives.

In one of the latest acts of horrific violence, two Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies were shot and critically injured as they sat in their patrol car at a metro rail station Saturday evening. Protesters gathered outside the hospital where the deputies were receiving treatment, some chanting: ``Death to police. Kill the police.'' This is shameful and cannot be tolerated.

It is notable that this mass chaos is occurring in cities with leftist leaders who have been tragically slow at condemning the violence.

This lack of leadership, we might add, whether by intentional design or perhaps by good but misguided intentions, has kept entire segments of our population in failing schools, in crime-ridden communities, and in generational cycles of poverty and dependency.

We owe it to the American people to protect their homes, families, and businesses from any mob that seeks to tear down our society.

We owe it to our hardworking police officers, who dedicate their lives to upholding the law, to give them respect and provide them with the resources, training, and support they need to do their jobs safely and effectively.

This is why I stand with the American people, with our law enforcement, and will oppose any attempt to, in a matter of fact or even in simply imagining, defund the police.

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