OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Cloture Motion

Floor Speech

Date: Jan. 28, 2025
Location: Washington, DC

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Mr. KELLY. Mr. President, I stand before you today as the son of two police officers. Growing up in our family, service always came first. My mom was actually the first woman to become a police officer in our hometown of West Orange, NJ. Before that, she was working as a secretary and a waitress, often at the same time. Her becoming a cop meant more money for our family. It literally changed our lives.

One day, my mom was seriously injured in the line of duty. When on patrol, she got a call about a burglary at a department store. She rushed to that store to help. The criminal attacked her--attacked her pretty badly. She was injured, and her injuries forced her to retire. It ended her career.

Now, that was a risk that she took for our community as a police officer. These are the same risks we see officers make every single day across our country--in all 50 States, all the Territories, and here in Washington, DC.

Our New Jersey community and her union, they had her back. The very idea of her attacker being let off the hook would have been outrageous. It would have been shocking. And it is almost impossible to imagine because it simply would have never happened.

Yet that is exactly what did happen when the President, Donald Trump, pardoned hundreds of criminals who violently assaulted Capitol Police officers and DC Police officers on January 6. That was his priority on day one of his Presidency. It wasn't to lower the price of gas or groceries or housing; it was to let violent criminals off the hook for storming this building and attacking the police, leaving many of them bleeding and bruised or worse--in some cases much, much worse.

Now, how does this line up with backing the blue? I don't get it. These pardons are an insult to every man and woman, like my parents, who served and served our country in law enforcement.

President Trump is sending a message that violence against cops is OK when it is done for him. That is a message that all of us must reject unequivocally.

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