Auntie Maxine calls out Congress over police reform failure

“Even in the wake of the tragic death of Tyre Nichols, not enough members of Congress are invested in police reform legislation for it to pass,” said Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) on Sunday.
Josh Hawley of Missouri and Ted Cruz of Texas
In an interview with MSNBC’s “Symone,” Waters singled out Sens. Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz, both of Texas. I commend Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) for their opposition to abandoning the filibuster, which has hindered Democrats’ ability to pass police reform and other legislation.
Waters told MSNBC’s Symone Sanders, “They don’t give a darn about this issue.” “Given the choice, they would rather use their two votes to give themselves more power in the Senate than anything else.”
A filibuster requires 60 votes to begin and end debate for most legislation before a final vote can be called. The rule allowing Republicans to easily thwart Democratic legislative priorities is due to the slim majority that Democrats hold in the Senate.
During an appearance onstage at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, earlier this month, Manchin and Sinema reaffirmed their commitment to the filibuster ― even exchanging a high-five.
If filibuster reform is not implemented and Republicans maintain control of the House, it is unlikely that Congress will respond to calls for action after Nichols’ death.
The release of footage on Friday of the attack on Nichols by the Memphis Police Department prompted protests across the country and a renewed push for police reform.
The video shows officers attacking the Black 29-year-old while shouting obscenities. Three days after being hospitalized for injuries from an assault, Nichols died.
Five officers who attacked Nichols were charged with second-degree murder and other crimes, and were fired from the department.
Although the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act passed in the House in 2021, it never managed to get through in the Senate.
Among other reform measures, the bill would expand accountability for law enforcement officers’ misconduct, limit some policing practices, increase transparency and data collection, and set training requirements.
“Unless people continue to fight for change and elect officials who care about enacting such laws, Waters said she doesn’t see any hope for police reform legislation,”
“Nothing is going to happen until the people in the streets continue to protest and to rally,” Waters said.
The sentence could be rewritten as follows:
Ben Crump, a civil rights lawyer representing the Nichols family, called on President Joe Biden to reengage the House of Representatives on the issue of gun violence.
If we don’t use his tragic death to finally get the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act passed, then we are to blame, Crump told CNN’s Dana Bash during an appearance on “State of the Union” Sunday.
The Congressional Black Caucus has requested a meeting with Biden this week to discuss justice reform.
“We still have a long way to go in solving systemic police violence in America,” said Rep. Steven Horsford (D-Nev.), who chairs the caucus, in a statement Sunday. He was referring to the brutal beating of Tyre Nichols, which he called murder.