Just one week after national thought leader Charlie Kirk posted an op-ed here at Human Events, his prediction came true: the Department of Justice may take control of the Portland Police Bureau.
Kirk argued that the progressive calls to defund the police were really a ploy to eventually create a national police force.
“Sometimes the most effective way to get what you really want is to tell people that you want the exact opposite,” Kirk wrote. “It is a subtle form of manipulation wherein you get the ‘audience’ to hear you say you want one sort of extreme thing; they, in turn, express concern and objection, so you’re able to then say, ‘I hear you. How about if we do this instead?’ That is exactly what is happening when Democrats and BLM leaders tell you that they want to defund the police.”
“As lawlessness and violent crimes continue to escalate across the country, they are hoping that American citizens will speak out and make clear that they need and want police, but of course, they also want to have the imperfections of policing addressed. Once that happens, Squad-types like AOC, Pressley, Tlaib, Omar, and others can stand in front of a microphone and say to the people: We hear you. That is why today, we are sponsoring legislation that will establish a national police force,” he added.
Now, a lack of transparency may give the Department of Justice grounds to do just that.
During the protests and violent riots over the last year, the Department of Justice logged over 6,000 instances of use-of-force within the police department. These were supposed to be logged in a specific way, but they weren’t.
The Department of Justice sent a warning letter to Portland police demanding a response, and the city has until Friday to provide an explanation and present a plan.
“The parties have agreed that the City will provide a response by Friday, May 7, 2021,” the Office of the City Attorney said.
Jason Renaud with the Mental Health Association of Portland said the feds could have grounds to take over the bureau, KGW8 News reports.
“We haven’t heard from the city of Portland. That’s what the DOJ has asked for,” Renaud said. “They have asked the city to respond, if the city is not willing to do that, and they haven’t been willing so far, then the issue goes to mediation, which has not been successful in the past. And if it does, isn’t successful in mediation, then the police Bureau will go into the hands of a federal judge.”
