Joni Ernst Calls on Theresa Greenfield to Denounce ‘Dangerous’ Movement to Defund Police

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 29: Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) walks through the Capitol Building dur
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Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) on Monday called on Iowa Senate Democrat candidate Theresa Greenfield to denounce the “dangerous” movement to defund Iowa and America’s police departments.

Several Democrat progressive leaders such as Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) have called for public officials to defund police departments across the country.

Ocasio-Cortez even claimed that many police departments are “over-funded.”

She said, “If you’re an elected official … I’m asking you to ask yourself, what are you willing to sacrifice to make sure that over-funded police departments are defunded?”

The Iowa GOP noted in a press release on Monday that Greenfield and other Iowa Democrat congressional candidates such as Abby Finkenauer (D-IA), Rita Hart, Cindy Axne (D-IA), and J.D. Scholten have yet to condemn calls to defund the police.

Ernst said in a statement on Monday that calls to defund the police are “dangerous.”:

Let’s be clear: defunding the police is an absurd and radical position. Certainly improvements and changes are needed to make our communities safer, but liberals’ radical call to abolish, defund, and disband our men and women in blue is incredibly irresponsible and dangerous.

She asked rhetorically, “Will Theresa Greenfield join me in denouncing calls to defund or abolish our police officers?”

Jesse Hunt, the National Republican Senatorial Committee communications director, said in a statement on Monday that Senate Democrats have to answer to voters about how they plan to keep Americans safe while they move to defund the police.

“What once lived on the liberal fringe has now broken through in serious way,” said Hunt. “Senate Democrats everywhere are going to have to answer to voters about how they plan to keep Americans safe while their party seeks to ‘defund the police.'”

Iowa GOP spokesman Aaron Britt said that Iowa Democrats have become complicit in “lawlessness” as they embrace movements to weaken America’s police departments.

“The Democrats’ disastrous agenda includes restricting our second amendment rights, and now they’re calling for police departments across the country to be dismantled,” Britt said in a statement on Monday.

“Iowa Democrats that continue to remain silent on this issue are nothing short of complicit in supporting lawlessness and anarchy,” he added.

Sean Moran is a congressional reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SeanMoran3.

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