The Hill: Wallace has contentious interview with [Jim Banks]: Aren’t you the ones defunding the police?

“Wallace interrupted Banks, telling him that President Biden’s American Rescue Plan, which Banks voted against, would have given localities more money to hire police officers”

INGOP’s fraudulent tactics on policing follows Party’s misinformation on taxes, government spending, and job creation

INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Democratic Party, the organization that advocates for the future of Indiana and its families, today commended Fox News Sunday for holding Congressman Jim Banks and the Indiana Republican Party accountable for voting to defund law enforcement agencies across the state – despite deploying a form of extreme partisanship against Democrats on the very topic. Under President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan, more than $350 billion is being allocated for states to help recruit more police officers and invest in new programs to fight crime. Congressman Jim Banks and every Republican in Indiana’s Congressional delegation voted “no”, proving once more that the Indiana Republican Party has no agenda or identity but only lives off of extreme partisanship. 

“Just like their arguments on taxes, spending, and job creation, the Indiana Republican Party is once again caught in a lie, this time on giving our law enforcement agencies more resources to fight crime,” said Drew Anderson, spokesman for the Indiana Democratic Party. “Indiana Republicans like Jim Banks are more focused on making political points and building power instead of creating a better future for Hoosier families. Their actions further show that the Indiana Republican Party has no identity or moral compass, and how the Democrats’ record of delivering right now for Indiana is the winning strategy to move us forward.”

The Indiana Republicans’ fraudulent claims on policing follows their misinformation campaigns on government spending, taxes, and job creation. Indiana Republicans claimed Democrats will raise taxes on Hoosiers despite doing the same thing in the Indiana Statehouse. Republicans claim Democrats are spending too much in Washington despite ballooning the national debt by $7.8 trillion in four years. And Indiana Republicans claim they created a great state economy despite a record of losing “good jobs” and forcing Hoosiers to work more for less. The Indiana Republican Party has lost their identity and their extreme partisanship does nothing but divide Hoosier families and hold them back from a brighter future. 

Here’s how Jim Banks’s interview on Fox News is playing (so far): 

The Hill: “‘Fox News Sunday’ host Chris Wallace sparred with Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) over Banks’s vote against an emergency relief bill that would have allocated funds to police and first responders.

‘Can’t you make the argument that it’s you and the Republicans who defunded the police?’ Wallace asked Banks, who is the chairman of the conservative Republican Study Committee.” […]

“Wallace interrupted Banks, telling him that President Biden’s American Rescue Plan, which Banks voted against, would have given localities more money to hire police officers, invest in new technology and create new crime intervention programs. 

‘I’ve heard your point about the last year,’ Wallace said. ‘But you and every other Republican voted against this $350 billion.’”

The Daily Beast: Chris Wallace Corners GOP Congressman Jim Banks: Aren’t You the Ones Defunding the Police?

“Fox News anchor Chris Wallace challenged Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN) on Sunday over his claims that Democrats are responsible for rising violent crime rates due to anti-police rhetoric, pointing out that Republicans are the ones who have actually voted against additional law enforcement funding.” […]

“After Banks asserted that Democrats have spent a year “stigmatizing” police and providing a “recipe that criminals in every city in America are liking,” Wallace confronted the congressman on his personal opposition to additional funding for local law enforcement agencies.” […]

“The Indiana lawmaker, meanwhile, attempted to fall back on his claims that The Squad’s rhetoric was to blame, only for Wallace to interrupt him before he could continue reciting his canned lines.”

Newsweek: Fox News’ Chris Wallace Confronts Rep. Jim Banks on GOP Vote Against More Police Funding

Vox: “Chris Wallace nails Rep. Jim Banks on how hypocritical it is for him to allege that Democrats are the anti-police party while he and all other Republicans vote against legislation providing cities and states with funding for more and better policing” 

The Recount: “Fox News’ Chris Wallace to Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN): Congressman Banks, you voted against that [Rescue] package, against the $350B, just like every other Republican in the House & Senate — so can’t you make the argument that it’s you and Republicans who are defunding the police?”

###