President Joe Biden asked Daily Caller reporter Shelby Talcott to determine if Republicans believe Democrats are vampires who suck the blood out of children.
Talcott asked Biden about some Democrats’ support for defunding the police after Wednesday’s town hall, where the president said that Republicans who say Democrats are in favor of defunding the police are “lying.”
“Are there people in the Democratic Party who want to defund the police?” Talcott asked.
“Are there people in the Republican Party who think we’re sucking the blood out of kids?” Biden responded. Talcott told him that she wasn’t sure and asked again if there are Democrats in favor of defunding the police – Biden did not answer and walked away. (RELATED: ‘The Squad’ Pushes To ‘Defund The Police’ While Spending Thousands On Private Security To Protect Themselves)
.@ShelbyTalcott: “Are there people in the Democrat Party who want to defund the police?”
Biden: “Are there people in the Republican Party who think we’re sucking the blood out of kids?”
Shelby: “…I’m not sure”
— Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) July 23, 2021
Biden also told reporters Wednesday night that he “is the Democratic Party” and said that he never asserted that there is not a single person in favor of defunding the police in the Democratic Party, just that it was not the party’s position.
“I said that is not the Democratic Party’s position,” Biden said. “I’m the Democratic Party. I am president. So is the Speaker of the House [Nancy Pelosi] and so is the Majority Leader [Chuck Schumer]. We are not defunding the police.”
During Wednesday’s town hall, host Don Lemon asked Biden about the defund the police movement and the president told him that Republicans who claim Democrats are in favor of defunding the police are “lying.”
“I’ve never said defund the police,” Biden added. “I don’t know any communities, particularly communities that are in the most need, and the poorest, and the most at-risk that don’t want police. They want police, though, to look at them as equals.”
Several Democratic politicians have supported defunding the police, including Missouri Rep. Cori Bush, New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar, but the party recently pivoted their stance and tried to blame Republicans for defunding the police due to the movement’s plummeting popularity.
Cities that have pushed for or successfully defunded their police departments have been forced to reckon with a surge in crime. The Los Angeles Police Department had its budget cut by $150 million, and LA subsequently had a 36% increase in homicides. Los Angeles eventually restored their police budget in mid-May. New York City had a 45% increase in homicides after slashing its police budget.