House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) insists the “defund the police” expression affected some Democratic candidates’ reelection chances in this past election.
He noted when the “defund the police” slogan appeared while Democratic Senate challenger Jaime Harrison appeared on TV, he “started to plateau.”
“That stuff hurt Jaimie and that’s why I spoke out against it a long time ago. I’ve always said that these headlines can kill a political effort,” Clyburn said.
He added, “We are all about making headway, and I just hope that going forward we will think about each one of these Congressional districts and let people represent their districts.”
Check out his remarks below:
WATCH on #MTP: Rep. Jim Clyburn says Democratic Senate challenger "Jaime Harrison started to plateau when 'Defund the Police' showed up … on TV right across his head."
— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) November 8, 2020
@WhipClyburn: "I have always said that these headlines can kill a political effort." pic.twitter.com/0NhoPsihgs
“Defund the police” became the common chant among protesters following the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd, as IJR previously reported.
President Donald Trump has criticized Democrats in the past for backing the statement.
“This year has seen the lowest crime numbers in our Country’s recorded history, and now the Radical Left Democrats want to Defund and Abandon our Police. Sorry, I want LAW & ORDER!” Trump tweeted.
This year has seen the lowest crime numbers in our Country’s recorded history, and now the Radical Left Democrats want to Defund and Abandon our Police. Sorry, I want LAW & ORDER!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 8, 2020
Some congressional Democrats have been vocal about avoiding supporting the call to defund the police, as IJR previously reported.
President-elect Joe Biden (D) has denied he supports the movement on a few different occasions.
“No, I don’t support defunding the police. I support conditioning federal aid to police, based on whether or not they meet certain basic standards of decency and honorableness,” Biden told CBS in June. “And, in fact, are able to demonstrate they can protect the community and everybody in the community.”
During an appearance on “60 Minutes” in October, Biden reiterated his position on defunding the police.
“I’ve never, ever supported defunding police. Matter of fact, we’d get more funding for police for different reasons,” he said.
Trump garnered an endorsement from the largest police union, the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), in September.