CNN "Erin Burnett Outfront" - Transcript: Interview with Hakeem Jeffries

Interview

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REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY): Well, people all throughout America stood up, spoke up, showed up in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd throughout the streets of this country. Young people of every race in a way that was multicultural, multi-generational actually as it emerged and was just a phenomenal thing to see.

There were two things that folks were demanding, appropriately. One; accountability for the death of George Floyd. And the verdict, I think, delivers a significant measure of accountability. Now, we've got to see what happens with three other officers who should have intervened and did not.

But they also demanded that we change policing in a fundamental way, so that there is a respectful, dignified, humane relationship between law enforcement and communities of color. And that's really what we have to work on right now and that is what the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act is all about.

BURNETT: So let me ask you about the bill that your colleagues, Republican Senator Tim Scott has been working on with the Democratic Senator Cory Booker. It's a police reform bill. One major sticking point has been this issue of qualified immunity for police, which makes it harder for victims to file lawsuits against officers.

And Democrats wanted to get rid of that, Republicans say that if you get rid of it, it's going to prevent people from serving as police officers, because people will want to say, well, I'm scared to do my job because I'm going to get sued. So today, Sen. Scott said he's proposing shifting the burden of

responsibility from individual police officers to police departments, so it's a compromise of sorts. Is it enough? Do you think that this will work that this will solve both sides and get this bill through?

JEFFRIES: I have not seen the particular language yet that Sen. Scott is floating or talk to Congresswoman Karen Bass or members of the Congressional Black Caucus, Congresswoman Bass has done a phenomenal job of leading the effort here in the House of Representatives.

BURNETT: Yes.

JEFFRIES: We are committed to getting something done, but it has to ensure that there will be accountability for rogue police officers who crossed the line moving forward, both on the criminal side and on the civil side. And perhaps most importantly is that we stop these tragedies from happening to begin with.

Now, that's going to be an important part of the legislation that we ultimately hopefully agree upon and send to President Biden's desk. And so there are certain things that need to be in that. We have to criminalize the chokehold and other types of tactics such as the knee to the neck. I think we're going to do that.

We have to change the standard for use of force and make one that is put into place nationally, so that the use of deadly force as a matter of last resort and de-escalation tactics are required in the first instance. That's something that I think we can do.

We need a national database so that rogue police officers who've been brutal, who've been violent, who've engaged in the excessive use of force can't just jump from one police department to another police department without any visibility into that officers prior behavior.

That's what happened in Tamir Rice case where you had an officer who was fired for bad actions, but hired without any visibility by that Cleveland PD.

BURNETT: Yes. It may surprise people. I think they don't realize in so many places chokeholds already are against the rules. But as you point out, it's a checkerboard across this country.

So yesterday, Democrats in the House voted down an effort by the House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to censure Democratic Congresswoman Maxine Waters over her comments about the Chauvin trial right. She said that this was first-degree murder, which, of course, was not even a charge.

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And she said that if there wasn't a guilty verdict that 'we've got to get more confrontational when she was asked what people should do on the streets'.

So just putting aside the politics for a moment, if I can, Congressman, the Judge in the Chauvin trial said that Waters' words could be used as grounds to appeal and overturn the Chauvin verdict. So you're the Judiciary Committee, you're a lawyer. How upsetting is it to you that a member of your party could theoretically be responsible for something like that?

JEFFRIES: That was an incredibly inappropriate statement by the Judge. And I was actually shocked that he said it, because there was nothing that Congresswoman Waters said that was out of bounds or inappropriate. In fact, she was leaning in to language that had been used by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. when he talked about the importance of confrontation and it was men non-violent direct action to confront bigotry, hatred and injustice.

And that was the spirit of what Chairwoman Waters was saying. And she, in fact, clarified and made that clear thereafter. And so I was a little surprised that the Judge saw fit to both deny appropriately the motion for a mistrial, but then characterized her remarks.

BURNETT: So I think it's interesting what you're saying, the context is really important. Just one point, you do think it's appropriate that she came out and said not as a member of the jury, but as an elected person that she thinks it's first-degree murder?

JEFFRIES: Well, I didn't hear that comment being made. I think that the jury found that murder took place and that when you have a knee to someone's neck in that fashion, when the individual was handcuffs not resisting, the people who had gathered are basically saying you're going to kill this individual, George Floyd, and the officer continued in such a cold-blooded fashion. Yes, that's murder.

Now, the jury found it's second-degree murder and third-degree murder, and those were the charges. But I don't think that's inconsistent with the spirit of what Chairwoman Waters was trying to say. And again, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle really have no moral standing to criticize anything that any of us have to say when we err on the side of trying to elevate and lift up the principles of equal protection under the law, liberty and justice for all.

While at the same time, they are fanning the flames of hatred continuing to perpetrate the big lie, which is what fueled the violent insurrection and attack on the Capitol.

BURNETT: All right. Thank you very much, Chairman Jeffries. I appreciate your time.

JEFFRIES: Thank you so much, Erin.

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