Vance blasts ‘weak-willed’ US leaders of ‘sanctuary’ cities for turning police into ‘enemies’
Vice President JD Vance ripped into so-called “sanctuary” state and city leaders Thursday, as well as other “weak-willed” officials who he said have taken cops enforcing the law and maintaining order for granted.
“The Trump administration has zero tolerance for anyone who threatens to defund, abolish or otherwise diminish our law enforcement heroes,” Vance said in a US Capitol address to mark the 44th annual National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service.
“And just as President Trump and the administration are filled with strong leaders, we have no tolerance for weak-willed municipal leaders who allow petty crime to take root all over our communities,” he went on.
“We have no tolerance for people who defy our immigration laws or surrender entire blocks of their own cities to Antifa and other ridiculous organizations.”
Trump signed an executive order last month putting sanctuary jurisdictions on notice that their federal funding would be reviewed — and potentially pulled — within 30 days if they didn’t begin cooperating on immigration enforcement.
also authorized Attorney General Pam Bondi and other agency heads to provide federal funding for officers’ legal defense and increased pay.
Vance honored officers who died i꧑n the line of duty and was joined by Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel, border czar Tom Homan and others.
One veteran St. Louis cop, David Lee, had been killed last September after being struck by an illeg♑al immigrant who was driving while intoxicatꦕed.
The vice president’s speech also ripped “far-left prosecutors boosted in their elections by faraway billionaires” who “simply decline to take action against criminals,” before touting President Trump’s electoral victory.
“I know that none of us here like crime, but last year in November I think the American people killed the ‘defund the police’ movement — and they used Donald J. Trump as the murder weapon,” Vance said.
“It is gone from this country and we’re never gonna let it come back.”
Earlier Thursday, during♎ a breakfast at the Naval Observatory, Vance also honored a retired Ohio deputy who was “mowed down by a bloodthirsty criminal” while directing traffic near the University of Cincinnati on May 2.
“Larry Henderson lost his life because he was doing his job and keeping people safe,” Vance said. “And when I think about why that senseless crime happened, obviously you’ve got to place blame on the guy who committed the crime.”
“But I also think aꦐ lot of the blame falls on American leadership, who for too long, have made our police officers out to be enemies, instead of the great public servants that all of us know that they are,” he said.
The suspect, Rodney Hinton, was later charged with aggravated murder.
Officials said Hinton drove into H💞enderson after pol🌟ice officers had shot and killed the suspect’s 18-year-old son on May 1.
Hinton’s son was allegedly armed and in the middle of fleeing the scene of a stolen vehicle investigation when he was shot. Hinton has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) proposed a bill Monday in Henderson’s honor that would set a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years for those convicted of assaulting federal officers.
The current statu🌟te m♚andates just eight years in federal prison.
