U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) traveled to Erlanger last week to meet with local law enforcement officers and sheriffs to discuss issues facing law enforcement and his efforts in the U.S. Senate to assist and support law enforcement across the Commonwealth.
The group of over 20 law enforcement officers and sheriffs were able to discuss the current challenges of policing and recruiting in the community.
“We are hearing all around the state of many officers feeling that they haven’t been treated fairly with the current negative connotations presented by the mainstream media. The media has created a perception that all police officers are bad. That’s simply not true. But because of this, police in Kentucky and across the nation have seen a significant decrease in young men and women wanting to become police and law enforcement officers,” said Dr. Paul.
Rand Paul
The officers also said they struggle with funding at the local and state level, having to choose between proper policing equipment, training programs, and other necessities that are needed to perform their jobs.
“We can’t afford to defund the police. We should be providing more funding for our law enforcement officers, rather than wasteful government programs,” said Dr. Paul. “Every day brave men and women put on their uniform to protect our cities and towns. Yes, there are bad police officers, but for every bad officer, there are hundreds of good ones. No one hates bad cops more than the good cops.”
The group of law enforcement officials also said that the people in the community of Northern Kentucky are largely pro-law enforcement and do not want to see a state with less law enforcement.
“We’ve seen what happens when there are less police on the streets and less funding for police and first responders. Just look at New York City, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. Crime is at an all-time high, and yet the mayors and governors of these cities want to defund it’s law enforcement and abolish police,” said Dr. Paul. “Kentucky is largely a pro-law enforcement state and we need to make sure it stays that way.”
Dr. Paul has always been a strong supporter of law enforcement and continues to support the men and women in blue who put their lives on the line for our communities. Over the past few months Dr. Paul has traveled across the Commonwealth to speak with over 30 different law enforcement and first responder groups.
Dr. Paul was joined in attendance at lat week’s event by law enforcement officers and sheriffs from Boone, Campbell, and Kenton counties, the Northern Kentucky DEA, the NKY Drug Strike Force, and police chiefs and officers from Alexandria, Bellevue, Erlanger, Highland Heights, Lakeside Park, and Ludlow.
From the Office of Rand Paul
