Backing America’s Finest

Our nation's law enforcement officers work every day to keep our communities safe. We owe it to these brave individuals to provide them with the resources necessary to do their jobs both safely and securely across America. I stand with our law enforcement officers and thank them for putting their lives on the line. Yet despite their service, there are still calls to "defund the police," which would leave our communities less safe and drive economic opportunity away from areas that need it most.

I recently cosponsored crucial legislation to support our police. The Protect and Serve Act provides additional protection for our law enforcement officers by creating an opportunity to pursue enhanced penalties for anyone who targets and purposefully harms any federal, state, or local officer. Because criminal manners are typically handled at the state level, these additional penalties apply if an attacker, or an officer, crosses state lines or uses a channel of interstate commerce. There are also increased consequences if a firearm or weapon that traveled in interstate commerce is used in an attack. This bill establishes a penalty of up to ten years in prison for someone who attacks and injures an officer, with an additional penalty of life in prison for either killing or kidnapping an officer.

The second piece of legislation I supported is the Back the Blue Act, and it does just that, it backs our officers. This bill strengthens protections for police officers by forming a new federal crime for killing, attempting to kill, or conspiring to kill a federal judge, federal law enforcement officer, or federally funded public safety officer. This act was introduced by my Nebraska colleague Representative Don Bacon, and I am proud to support a bill that stands with our law enforcement officers by including mandatory minimums based on the degree of any injury sustained as well as the use of a dangerous weapon against them.

Expanding self-defense and Second Amendments rights for Law Enforcement Officers while opening up grant funding to strengthen the relationship between police and their communities is what both the Protect and Serve Act and the Back the Blue Act aim to do. Along with these bills, I also supported a resolution that condemns calls to "defund," "disband," "dismantle," or "abolish" the police. As citizens, we must recognize the dedication to our communities from law enforcement personnel.

Ensuring our law enforcement have the tools to protect themselves both in an attack and in the courtroom should be of the utmost importance in all cities across the country, not just the Third District. I will continue standing with these men and women who selflessly serve all Americans in Nebraska and throughout the nation by supporting legislation that supports them on a federal level.