Tammy on Police Militarization in America

In a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, Tammy joined Senators Robert Casey (D-PA), Jon Tester (D-MT), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Christopher Murphy (D-CT) in calling for the U.S. Department of Justice to track all federal aid and equipment provided to state and local public safety organizations to better understand how the U.S. Departments of Defense and Homeland Security can best assist local law enforcement. Tammy passionately believes in the importance of effective policing and has noted how recent events have highlighted a growing trend of American local law enforcement using military equipment.

The Senators write, “Following meetings we have held in our respective states, we believe that there is a clear need for a more robust federal role in tracking and evaluating public safety equipment transfers nationwide… When Congress, the President, or the American people ask whether military aid to law enforcement is serving its stated purpose, DOJ should have what it needs to offer an informed response.”

Prior to the letter to Attorney General Holder, Tammy participated in a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing, Oversight of Federal Programs for Equipping State and Local Law Enforcement. Tammy questioned the panelists about the process of equipping police officers with military equipment and discussed the best practices for supporting our state and local police departments. You can watch Tammy’s portion of the hearing here:

An online copy of the letter to Attorney General Holder is available here.