Politics

Pence Slams Calls Within Republican Party To Defund FBI, Argues They’re ‘Just As Wrong’ As Defund The Police Push

(Screenshot YouTube, Kyle Mazza UNF NEWS, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MH7Nx46-oS8)

Shelby Talcott Senior White House Correspondent
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Former Vice President Mike Pence slammed calls to defund the FBI on Wednesday, putting him at odds with some members of the Republican Party.

A number of individuals within the GOP, like Republican Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Lauren Boebert of Colorado and Paul Gosar of Arizona, have called for defunding the FBI following the raid on former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home. This rallying cry, Pence said Wednesday, equates to the “defund the police” slogan pushed by some of the more liberal members of the Democratic Party – a slogan that Republicans have sharply decried.

“I also want to remind my fellow Republicans: We can hold the attorney general accountable for the decision that he made without attacking rank and file law enforcement personnel at the FBI. The Republican Party is the party of law and order,” Pence said during the New Hampshire-based “Politics & Eggs” breakfast event.

“These attacks on the FBI must stop. Calls to defund the FBI are just as wrong as calls to defund the police,” he added.

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Pence, while admitting it’s “fairly well known” that he and Trump have had “differences” in opinion, still appeared to take the former president’s side regarding allegations of politicization of the FBI. Shortly after the raid occurred, the former vice president expressed his “deep concern” surrounding the search of Trump’s home. (RELATED: Pence Smacks Down Idea He Could Have ‘Overturned’ 2020 Election)

He furthered his initial comments Wednesday, demanding more transparency from Attorney General Merrick Garland. While the Department of Justice (DOJ) backed unsealing the search warrant, it recently argued against releasing details in the affidavit pertaining to the incident.

“I call on Attorney General Garland to give the American people a full accounting of the reasons why this action was necessary and while he’s begun to do so, it’s not nearly enough information … and I’m going to continue to call on the attorney general to make that information available to the American people, make it available to the intelligence committees that are confident with dealing with classified information,” Pence said Wednesday.

“This unprecedented action does demand unprecedented transparency,” the former vice president continued.