Fox News’ Peter Doocy asked White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki if President Joe Biden will take “crime in big cities more seriously” after a Democratic Congresswoman was carjacked at gunpoint.
During a press briefing on Thursday, Doocy asked, “Is the President taking crime in big cities more seriously now that a Democratic member of Congress Mary Gay Scanlon has been carjacked at gunpoint?”
“Let me first say that we’re relieved that she was not injured. And the president called her and spoke with her this morning,” Psaki responded.
She continued, “It is absolutely unacceptable for any American, whether they’re a member of Congress or not, to be victimized by crime like that. We have been stepping up federal law enforcement efforts for some time now.”
Psaki explained the administration has “given communities historic levels of fundings” to “fight crime,” hire additional law enforcement officials, and provide them with additional resources.
Watch the video below:
"Is the President taking crime in big cities more seriously now that a Democratic member of Congress Mary Gay Scanlon has been carjacked at gunpoint?"
— Howard Mortman (@HowardMortman) December 23, 2021
"The president called her & spoke with her this morning…President has never supported defunding the police"
Full answer here: pic.twitter.com/T1szfktdAA
Doocy asked, “If the president is giving big cities historic levels of funding and members of Congress are going home and getting carjacked at gunpoint, then what else can the president do or what else is the president going to do to keep people safe?”
Psaki responded by saying the administration would “love to continue to step up a range of other programs we’ve had around the country, strike forces that have been helping individual cities, working with law enforcement partnerships to help individual cities.”
“The president has never supported defunding the police. He’s always been an advocate for adequate funding and ensuring that police departments and community policing programs have exactly what they need,” she added.
On Wednesday, Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.) was carjacked at gunpoint in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
“Wednesday afternoon, at around 2:45 p.m., Congresswoman Scanlon was carjacked at gunpoint in FDR Park following a meeting at that location,” her office said in a statement. “The Congresswoman was physically unharmed. She thanks the Philadelphia Police Department for their swift response, and appreciates the efforts of both the Sergeant at Arms in D.C. and her local police department for coordinating with Philly PD to ensure her continued safety.”