The anniversary of George FloydB次元官网网址檚 death was supposed to a milestone moment, a time to celebrate passage of legislation to B次元官网网址渞oot out systemic racismB次元官网网址� in the criminal justice system, in the words of President Joe Biden. Instead, FloydB次元官网网址檚 family visited Washington on Tuesday to mourn with Biden and prod legislators to act as they commemorate the loss of their brother, father and son one year ago.
FloydB次元官网网址檚 death sparked a global reckoning over racism and growing calls for police reform, but has been elusive. Still, congressional negotiators remain optimistic about the prospects for a bill, and say theyB次元官网网址檝e made progress toward an agreement this week.
ItB次元官网网址檚 a high-profile legislative fight where Biden has notably taken a back seat, preferring to leave the work of crafting a compromise to lawmakers on Capitol Hill, in contrast to his fevered advocacy, both public and private, for his infrastructure bill and the COVID-19 relief package.
The Floyd family will have multiple opportunities to weigh in on the congressional efforts Tuesday. In addition to their visit to the White House, the Floyd family was meeting with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Karen Bass, the lead House negotiator on the policing bill, as well as key senators.
While Biden set the anniversary of FloydB次元官网网址檚 death as the initial deadline for legislation to reach his desk, the issue of police reform is a particularly politically thorny one. Congressional negotiators have struggled to find a compromise that can make it through an evenly-divided Senate.
Still, speaking on Tuesday on CNN, Philonese Floyd, FloydB次元官网网址檚 brother, expressed optimism at the chances for an eventual bill to pass the Senate. B次元官网网址淚 think things have changed. I think it is moving slowly but we are making progress,B次元官网网址� he said.
He spoke, too, to the gravity of the day for the Floyd family, saying his sister had called him just past midnight to tell him, B次元官网网址淭his is the day our brother left us.B次元官网网址�
Ben Crump, the Floyd familyB次元官网网址檚 lawyer called on Biden to B次元官网网址渞eiterate that we need to get it passed.B次元官网网址�
ItB次元官网网址檚 in line with the sentiment shared by many criminal justice advocates, who say the onus is on Congress, not the president, to act.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 absolutely vital that members of Congress put partisan politics aside and pass meaningful reform to hold police officers responsible who act outside of their oath to protect and defend,B次元官网网址� said Wade Henderson, interim president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, in a statement to the AP.
died on May 25, 2020 after former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on his neck for more than nine minutes, while Floyd repeatedly said he couldnB次元官网网址檛 breathe. His death sparked months of nationwide protests focused on systemic racism and a renewed debate over police reform in the U.S. on multiple charges stemming from FloydB次元官网网址檚 death.
The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act would ban chokeholds by federal officers and end qualified immunity for law enforcement against civil lawsuits, as well as create national standards for policing in a bid to bolster accountability. It passed the House in March, but faces a much tougher road in the evenly-divided Senate.
On Monday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that the White House still sees the George Floyd Act as the appropriate vessel for police reform. She added, B次元官网网址淲hat weB次元官网网址檝e seen from the negotiators B次元官网网址� and weB次元官网网址檝e been in close touch with the negotiators as well B次元官网网址� is that they still feel there is progress being made.B次元官网网址�
White House advisers say Biden and his team have been in frequent touch with Capitol Hill negotiators over the legislation, but that this is an issue in which a high-profile public campaign by the president may do more harm than good, because of the political challenges surrounding the bill.
The biggest point of contention remains the issue of ending qualified immunity, which shields officers from legal action taken by victims and their families for alleged civil rights violations.
While progressives and many criminal justice reform advocates are insistent that it remain in the final version of the bill, some Democrats, most notably House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn and Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin, have said they could see a compromise on the issue. And Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has said he wouldnB次元官网网址檛 support any bill that ends qualified immunity.
Congressional negotiators are largely staying tight-lipped on the details of a compromise, but theyB次元官网网址檝e been working near daily on their efforts to hammer out a bill, and this week some sounded optimistic about its future. Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, who has been working with Democratic Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey to hammer out a compromise, said Monday that B次元官网网址淚 think weB次元官网网址檙e starting to see a frameB次元官网网址� for the final legislation.
B次元官网网址淲e had good progress over the weekend, I thought. And I think we can see the end of the tunnel,B次元官网网址� he said.
On qualified immunity, ScottB次元官网网址檚 proposal would allow individuals to pursue legal action against police departments instead of individual officers, as a compromise, but itB次元官网网址檚 unclear if advocacy groups would get behind such a proposal.
Booker echoed ScottB次元官网网址檚 comments on CNN, saying he was B次元官网网址渆ncouragedB次元官网网址� and that B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 really hopeful that we can get something done in the weeks ahead, not months.B次元官网网址�
Alexandra Jaffe, The Associated Press
