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Sen. Tom Cotton launched a scathing critique of the Biden administration’s approach to law enforcement in a letter addressed to Attorney General Merrick Garland. The Arkansas Republican expressed grave concerns about the Justice Department’s recent actions involving police departments nationwide.
In his correspondence, Cotton specifically highlighted the DOJ’s swift move to implement federal consent decrees across twelve local law enforcement agencies. This initiative, as reported by The Washington Post, appears to be an accelerated effort to establish federal oversight before President Biden’s term concludes.
Sen Tom Cotton, the Senate Republican Conference chair, sent a ‘letter’ to AG Garland, sounding the alarm about the Justice Department’s “last-minute takeover of a dozen police departments across the country using federal consent decrees.”
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has…
— Gordon 💥🇺🇸💥🇮🇱 (@StopTheCoup2020) January 7, 2025
Cotton’s letter demonstrated particular concern about the impact of these federal interventions on public safety. He wrote: “No police department—like any human institution—is without flaws, but federal consent decrees have a well-established and atrocious record of increasing crime and endangering law-abiding citizens. Violent crime has surged in seven out of twelve cities that entered federal consent decrees since 2012. For instance, violent crime soared by 61 percent in Los Angeles County, 36 percent in Albuquerque, 27 percent in Seattle, 20 percent in New Orleans, and 19 percent in Maricopa County.”
The Senator expressed specific worries about Minneapolis and Louisville, two cities reportedly next in line for consent decrees. Both locations have experienced unprecedented levels of violent crime in recent years, and Cotton argued that DOJ oversight by certain officials would only exacerbate their problems.
Senator Tom Cotton announces his support for Kash Patel as the new Director of the FBI:
"[He exposed] the corruption and wrongdoing at the FBI and DOJ that unfairly targeted Donald Trump and those around him in his first campaign." pic.twitter.com/Xo7Sj9flYQ
— US OBSERVE (@us_observe) December 2, 2024
In his rebuke of the administration’s policies, Cotton stated, “Crime has risen during the Biden administration and your tenure as Attorney General. We should be arresting, prosecuting, and incarcerating criminals—not handcuffing our police.”
The letter concluded with Cotton urging Garland to abandon these last-minute interventions: “I object to your efforts to perpetuate this administration’s failed policies. I urge you to drop these midnight lawsuits and let the new administration get about the business of protecting Americans from violent criminals.”
