[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 80 (Tuesday, May 15, 2007)]
[House]
[Page H4973]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
COPS
(Mr. EMANUEL asked and was given permission to address the House for
1 minute.)
Mr. EMANUEL. Madam Speaker, like my colleagues, I too, rise in
support of the full funding for the 100,000 community police officers.
It has been a linchpin to a very successful anti-crime strategy.
In the 1990s, we pursued a single strategy of putting more cops on
the beat and getting gangs, guns and drugs off the street. It led to
the longest and largest decline of violent crime in American history.
After the elimination of the COPS program, community police officers,
we saw a steady increase in violent crime. Cops doing community
policing, an old strategy, door by door, knowing their neighbors,
knowing their community, led to a dramatic drop in violent crime.
Reducing those 100,000 extra police on the streets led to an increase
in violent crime.
Democrats came here to change Washington, to bring a new direction to
our policy. Seeing an increase in violent crime in America, we went
back to a basic fundamental strategy that has proven year after year to
be successful, adding 100,000 cops, doing community policing, knowing
their neighbors, knowing the kids that go to school, knowing where the
problems are, hitting the problems before they start, leading to the
most successful anti-violent crime strategy in American history.
I am proud that we have brought this change to Washington.
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