Back the Blue
Floor Speech
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Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, I appreciate this time as we have our bipartisan Special Order hour to honor law enforcement officers all across America to talk about our back the blue.
This evening, as we begin, I am joined by so many of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle who truly do support our law enforcement community. We are here to celebrate the lives and also honor the deaths of many of these officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice.
Madam Speaker, as a career law enforcement officer, I know what our officers go through every day when they put on their uniforms, say good-bye to their families, and head out to do the important work of protecting their communities. They step into that breach between the good citizens that they have sworn to protect and that criminal element out there that would do them harm.
Unfortunately, over the last few years, we have seen an uptick in violence specifically directed at law enforcement officers, especially in the form of ambush-style attacks. These violent attacks have been fueled by antipolice rhetoric, which has left our officers demoralized and delegitimized.
In fact, according to the National Fraternal Order of Police, just this year, just in 2023 so far, 135 officers have been shot, 15 of those killed by gunfire. The number of officers shot in the line of duty is up 52 percent from this time 3 years ago.
Madam Speaker, there have been 38 ambush-style attacks on police officers, 38. In these attacks, 43 police officers have been shot. This country cannot tolerate this violence. We must respond with action to prevent further attacks against our police officers. I am grateful for my bipartisan colleagues who join me on this floor this evening to send a message that we have the backs of those officers who serve our communities.
This Congress, I am proud to have reintroduced three bipartisan bills to further support our law enforcement officers: The Invest to Protect Act, which will make critical investments in small police departments with fewer than 200 officers to help them with recruitment, retention, mental health support for their officers, and officer training. The Protect and Serve Act, which creates enhanced Federal penalties for individuals who deliberately target law enforcement officers in the line of duty. So if you target the police, Congress is going to target you. Then finally, the HELPER Act, which will help our law enforcement officers and other first responders buy homes within the community that they serve.
I am going to continue to advocate for legislation that supports and equips our men and women in blue. While we continue to work to support officers still on the job, we must also remember those who have laid down their lives in service to their communities.
Last week, I had the honor of commemorating Florida's fallen officers, including two in my own district. Paul Matthew Patrick was an Atlantic Beach police officer whose watch ended on September 12. He is a legacy. He died in 1932. Coby Brandon Seckinger is a St. Johns County deputy whose watch ended on December 14 of 2020.
Madam Speaker, it is vital that we never forget those who choose to walk out that door each day and face an unknown danger so that we don't have to. Ralph Waldo Emerson once said: ``The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.''
This week we remember their sacrifice and use it as an inspiration to better support law enforcement officers across this Nation. I pray each and every person across America would live the rest of our lives worthy of their sacrifice.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), my good friend across the aisle, who is also co-chair of the Law Enforcement Caucus. I thank him for being here, and he knows about service. He has served in the Army, and he is now serving on the Ways and Means Committee.
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Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, although the gentleman and I may not agree on everything, we do agree on the Law Enforcement Equity Act. As a cosponsor, I hope we can get that over the line. I think that would do a great service to our law enforcement communities out there.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Bacon). He is a retired U.S. Air Force general who knows all about service above self. He is also, I should say, one of the original cosponsors of the LEOSA Reform Act, which is certainly going to help law enforcement officers all across America.
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Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), my good friend.
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Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Gottheimer).
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Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for coming with us and joining on law enforcement issues. He is one of the hardest workers across the aisle I know. I can't tell him how much I appreciate his friendship.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Johnson), who also knows about service above self. He is a retired United States Air Force lieutenant colonel, and I thank him for his service.
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Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, those are true words from the heart.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell) again for an introduction.
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Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Torres).
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Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for the comments tonight. I know, as a law enforcement officer, that our 911 dispatchers are so overlooked, I think, by our communities, what they do for those men and women out there on the streets.
Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for her service, as well.
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Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure to introduce another law enforcement officer. He spent 23 years of his life serving Minnesota's Duluth Police Department. He is also an original cosponsor of the Protect and Serve Act.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Stauber).
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Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Stauber for his service.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Grothman), my good friend and someone who has had a life of service himself in the State legislature at all levels.
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Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his kind remarks.
Now, Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell) for any closing remarks he would like to make tonight.
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Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, I really do appreciate the work that we have been able to do on the law enforcement caucus serving together as co-chairs, and I look forward to the many more opportunities to come together and work. I thank everyone for making this Special Order hour bipartisan and recognizing our law enforcement officers are so very special.
Madam Speaker, I will close with this: As a law enforcement officer, my fundamental duty is to serve mankind; to safeguard lives and property; to protect the innocent against deception, the weak against oppression or intimidation, and the peaceful against violence or disorder; and to respect the constitutional rights of all men to liberty, equality, and justice. That is the opening of the Law Enforcement Officer's Code of Ethics.
If you go to the Law Enforcement Memorial, every officer whose name is etched on those walls lived by and died for that code. We remember them today. This whole week is about promises made and promises kept. We promised them and their families that they would never be forgotten.
This week we will keep that promise. I pray that we keep that promise every day, the rest of our lives. As I said earlier, I only pray that every person can live the rest of our lives worthy of their sacrifice. General Leave
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Mr. RUTHERFORD. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
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