Republican Tennessee Senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty reintroduced legislation Wednesday that would increase resources for law enforcement and help reduce violent crime.
The Daily Caller first obtained a copy of the bill, which is titled Restoring Law and Order Act. The legislation would specifically establish a grant that would hire more police officers and detectives, and provide funding for law enforcement agencies to target drug-related crimes such as fentanyl, which killed around 75,000 people in 2022.
It would also detain and deport illegal aliens who have committed crimes in the U.S. and use bail and pretrial detention to prevent dangerous offenders from returning to communities. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Blackburn Introduces Legislation To Double Penalties For Assaulting BOP Correctional Officers)
“Far too often, we’re seeing violent crimes committed by repeat offenders who end up back on the streets because of soft-on-crime bail policies. At the same time, law enforcement departments across the country are understaffed and ill-equipped to better target violent crime. Unfortunately, the far-left has made it one of their recent crusades to destroy the credibility of our brave law enforcement while pushing campaigns to defund the police and eliminate cash bail,” Blackburn told the Caller. “This National Police Week, I stand proudly with our men and women in blue and believe that we must fund — not defund — our police. This legislation will provide much-needed resources for our law enforcement officers to hunt down violent criminals, restore law and order, and keep Tennesseans safe.”
READ THE LEGISLATION HERE:
(DAILY CALLER OBTAINED) — … by Henry Rodgers
The legislation is being reintroduced during National Police Week. It was originally introduced in 2022. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: GOP Senators Introduce Legislation To End Government Collusion With Big Tech)
“The American people have had enough of the violent crime wave sweeping our nation,” Hagerty told the Caller.
“Unfortunately, Democrats in Congress have focused their efforts on snooping on hard-working Americans through the IRS instead of addressing violent crime. Our legislation would repurpose the wasteful, intrusive spending on thousands of new IRS agents and instead use it to address the rise in homicides, carjackings, robberies, and other violent crime unfolding in communities across the U.S. I’m pleased to join Senator Blackburn in reintroducing this legislation during National Police Week to help address this urgent need,” he added.