Talking Politics with Dan McHugh: Issue # 1 : The State of Crime & Public Safety With Special Contributor Dan Cox: Former Maryland State Delegate, & 2022 Maryland Republican Nominee for Governor

 

 

Talking Politics with Dan McHugh 

Former President of Montgomery County, MD Young Republicans, Former Maryland Legislative Aide, 2020 Field Organizer for Trump Victory in Pennsylvania, 2022 Campaign Manager for Julie Giordano Wicomico County, MD Executive   

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 Issue # 1: The State of Crime & Public Safety 

With Special Contributor Dan Cox:  Former Maryland State Delegate, & 2022 Maryland Republican Nominee for Governor  

 

 

National Fraternal Order of Police Facebook Page, https://www.facebook.com/GLFOP 
 

 

During the 2022 election crime & public safety of our communities & citizens was a major issue being talked about. Since 2020 with what happened from the Minneapolis incident with George Floyd and the national anti-police “Defund the Police” movement that spawned from that and continues to be peddled today by the left & the results it has had on public safety, crime, & police officers.

 

 What we have seen in the country since 2020 on violent crime in the country is that it has increased, 2022 “A Major Cities Chiefs Association survey of 70 U.S. law enforcement agencies through the first six months of 2022 violent crime increased by 4.4%. Robberies were up by 13%, and aggravated assaults increased by 3%” via the Washington Times. 

In 2021 in the state of Maryland, reactionary legislation passed with police reform laws, laws that have empowered criminality and been harmful to police officers. In a public safety press conference last month Maryland Governor Wes Moore said that violent crime, murders, and non-deadly shootings have more than doubled over the years in the state. In Maryland’s largest County Montgomery violent crime in 2022 has increased by 13.4 %, and in Baltimore City, 333 homicides for 2022 the 8th straight year Baltimore has tragically reached this over 300 milestone, in addition, the largest populated city in the region Philadelphia had 516 homicides for 2022. 

With police what we have seen since 2020 officers being shot has increased in the country by 57%, and officers being ambushed by attacks has increased by 100 %. The morale of the American police officer is at an all-time low making retainment and recruitment of police officers a major challenge, in New York City for example officers resigning there has been a 117% increase from 2021.  In Maryland last year a deputy sheriff was murdered by a violent criminal in Wicomico County, also a Maryland State Trooper as well in Wicomico was shot multiple times by a violent criminal during a traffic stop just a couple of weeks ago, and a female police officer in Baltimore City was ambushed and shot while sitting in her patrol car last year.  

There have been some positive more recently on public safety & crime we just saw very surprisingly President Biden in agreeance with Speaker McCarthy & house republicans signed to stop the nullification of Washington DC’s criminal code that would have made the city softer on even some violent crime. Also, even in some big major democrat cities like Baltimore the new States Attorney Ivan Bates is advocating for longer penalties for violent crime in the hope of deterrence, a complete 180 view from the previous state’s attorney. In addition, in the state of Maryland, two local leaders this year have emerged who have been advocating for stronger public safety policies, Maryland State Senator Bill Folden out of Frederick County, who is a police officer and sponsored the strongest tough on violent crime bill this session in Annapolis. The other is Wicomico County Executive Julie Giordano who ran on a very strong public safety message and has been to Annapolis to advocate for stronger laws against violent and repeat violent offenders, especially after the two tragic incidents that have happened in her county to law enforcement over the past year. 

Former Maryland State Delegate & 2022 republican nominee for Maryland Governor Dan Cox who served in the house judiciary committee recently stated “During my time on the campaign trail for Governor I talked to citizens all across the state about public safety and crime, and it appears their concerns are not being heard by the majority party in Annapolis because not a single piece of legislation is poised to be passed into law to crack down on violent crime in the state. I spent four years in my committee fighting bad public safety policy that was predicted to increase crime in the state, harm police officers, and innocent citizens.  Tragically that is what has happened. We are also seeing that trend at the federal level with the Biden administration, if things do not change with new policies this trend will continue of high crime and the continuation of punishing police officers and law-abiding citizens.” 

In closing since 2020 the "defund the police" movement and the reactionary policies and legislation that has stemmed from it have made our country less safe, have been harmful to police officers, and have empowered criminality to run wild. We need to get back to the simple message that committing crimes and acts of violence is wrong plain and simple, and some penalties come with it. This soft-on-crime approach and taking police officer's authority away from enforcing the law is a reckless ideology that has harmed the whole idea of the importance of public safety in keeping communities and citizens safe, and we need to reverse course because without order in a community, we don’t have a community, and that’s the scary path our country is headed in.