Former President Donald Trump highlighted his tough-on-crime stance as he spoke to the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) in North Carolina on Friday.
The Republican presidential nominee delivered the remarks during a FOP Board of Trustees meeting in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he reiterated his stance on policing, comparing his policies to that of his Democratic rival, Vice President Kamala Harris.
Since Harris took office in 2021, there has been a 43 percent increase in violent crime, according to Trump, who added that the Democrats have “led a war on law enforcement.” He also accused the Democrats of trying to defund the police and support sanctuary cities, which don’t cooperate with federal law enforcement in removing illegal immigrants from the country.
The Republican presidential nominee promised to invest in police retention and hiring law enforcement in his first spending bill if reelected. He also pledged to strengthen protections for police officers.
Trump stated that he will also establish a federal task force to dismantle criminal organizations and push for the death penalty for anyone convicted of killing a police officer.
“I can tell you we will never defund the police,” Trump said before joking, “We might overfund the police.”
FOP Endorsement
The FOP is the nation’s oldest and largest union of law enforcement officers, with 377,000 members across the country. The organization also endorsed Trump’s reelection bid in 2020.
An FOP committee met with Trump during its endorsement process, “but no similar meeting was granted by the Harris-Walz campaign,” the organization stated.
“Public safety and border security will be important issues in the last months of this campaign,” according to a statement by Patrick Yoes, National President of the FOP. Our members carefully considered the positions of the candidates on the issues and there was no doubt—zero doubt—as to who they want as our President for the next four years: Donald J. Trump.”
Law Enforcement Backing Harris
Ahead of Trump’s Friday address, around 100 law enforcement officers signed a letter declaring their support for Harris.
“This November, Americans will choose between someone who spent her career enforcing our laws and someone who has been convicted of breaking them,” the letter states. “Vice President Harris will stand alongside law enforcement officers to keep America safe, while Donald Trump will sow chaos, defund critical law enforcement agencies, and put all Americans at risk.”
Former Capitol Police officers have also expressed their support of Harris in light of Jan. 6. Former Capitol Police Sgt. Aguilino Gonell in his remarks at the Democratic National Convention last month that Trump had “summoned the attackers” and betrayed law enforcement. Former Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn previously accused Trump of leading “violent insurrectionists” to assault him and his fellow officers on Jan. 6, 2021, during a “Stop the Steal” protest disputing the results of the 2020 election.
When discussing crime on the campaign trail, Harris has highlighted her position as a top prosecutor in California and spoke of her experience in prosecuting “perpetrators of all kinds.”