WASHINGTON — The House on Thursday passed a package of police funding and public safety bills, legislation that will help vulnerable Democrats blunt GOP campaign attacks that they want to “defund the police” and are ignoring rising crime.
John Minchillo / AP fileThe passage of four policing and safety bills came after some last-minute, intraparty drama earlier in the day.
Had they followed through, it would have derailed the entire package and dealt Democrats an embarrassing blow on a major campaign issue before the midterms.
The Gottheimer bill, which easily passed 360-64, would provide grants to local police departments with fewer than 125 sworn officers.
While there is Senate support for some of the House-passed bills, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has no plans to bring a policing package to the floor before the Nov. 8 midterm election.