WANTED! Help Vet November Mid-term Candidates
We have an opportunity to create real change for cops & public safety
The November mid-terms present an opportunity to make a difference for police officers and the public they serve. No election is a panacea, but having elected officials in place who are amicable to law enforcement is a good start.
A lot of candidates say they support the police, however, campaign slogans and hashtags are meaningless. What matters are the actions they take (when it counts!) once elected.
Case in point: The Protect & Serve Act, if passed, could help deter attacks on cops by making it a federal offense to purposefully target a police officer. You'd think every so-called law & order lawmaker in the U.S. House of Representatives would be signing on as a co-sponsor. Yet of 435 U.S. representatives, the bill thus far has only 73 signatures. Why is this?
It’s not enough for a candidate to claim to value police lives. They need to offer specifics on how they would provide this support; and once elected, they need to be held accountable for their statements.
Which is why I’ve created a police questionnaire project to help vet November mid-term candidates.
About the Project
I’ve created questionnaires for Wisconsin candidates in the following categories: governor, lieutenant governor, state senator, state representative, U.S. senator, and U.S. representative.
Thus far, 20% of the candidates I’ve contacted have agreed to answer the survey. I’m now in the process of following up with the non-respondents.
Once the candidates have submitted their replies (the goal is to get them back by the end of June), I’ll create, and make available, a voter’s guide to the public.
I Could Really Use Your Help
This election guide could be especially powerful if other states were represented. If time permits, I will begin work on other states, but as a solo operator working on a volunteer basis, my bandwidth is limited.
You can help!
Identify candidates running in mid-term elections in your state. Do this by checking your upcoming ballot or consulting Ballotpedia.
Send me the names and email addresses of candidates running in the November mid-terms in any or all of the following categories: Governor, lieutenant governor, state senator, state representative, U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Senate. I will then send them the appropriate questionnaire.
If you have time to send them the questionnaire on your own, that would be even more helpful.
Here are two of the questionnaires I’ve been sending.
For the Blue Policing Questionnaire for U.S. House of Representative Candidates
Increasing violence towards police officers
Police officers are increasingly being slaughtered on American streets for the simple act of wearing a uniform and badge. Ambush-style attacks on cops were on the U.S. Department of Justice’s radar in 2015. And in 2021 alone, there was a 115% increase in these deliberate and calculated acts over the previous year, the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) recently reported. This trend has continued into 2022.
To help stem this tide, Representative John Rutherford (FL) crafted the Protect & Serve Act of 2021 (S.774 / H.R. 3079). In short, it makes it a federal offense to purposefully target a police officer in specific circumstances. If found guilty, an offender could face up to 10 years in prison or a term of life if the officer dies as a result of the attack.
The bill thus far has 73 co-sponsors in the U.S. House; the sole Wisconsin co-sponsor is Rep. Bryan Steil.
Questions: If possible, please explain your answers.
1. If elected, would you add your name as a co-sponsor to the Protect & Serve Act or to similar legislation?
2. If elected, would you vote for the Protect & Serve Act or similar legislation?
For the Blue Policing Questionnaire for Wisconsin State Senate Candidates
Increasing violence towards police officers
Police officers are increasingly being slaughtered on American streets for the simple act of wearing a uniform and badge. Ambush-style attacks on cops were on the U.S. Department of Justice’s radar in 2015. And in 2021 alone, there was a 115% increase in these deliberate and calculated acts over the previous year, the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) recently reported. The trend has continued into 2022.
To address the upswing in attacks and ambushes on police officers, the State of Florida passed The Combatting Violence, Disorder and Looting and Law Enforcement Protection Act in 2020. It makes striking a police officer during a violent or disorderly assembly punishable with a mandatory six-month jail sentence.
Questions. If possible, please explain your answers.
1. If elected as senator, would you be willing to sponsor or co-sponsor similar legislation in the state of Wisconsin?
2. If elected, would you sign this type of legislation if it came up for a vote?
Additional information about this topic
Police staffing shortages
In one nationwide survey to determine the prevalence of police staffing shortages, the Police Executive Research Forum found that on average, departments are filling about 93% of their available positions; and an International Association of Chiefs of Police survey found that 78% of police departments had difficulty recruiting qualified candidates. These numbers are being outpaced by an approximate 45% increase in police retirements and 18% increase in resignations. The fallout from this includes longer wait times for service, less time for proactive & community policing, and officer burnout.
Question. If possible, please explain your answer.
1. If elected, what initiatives would you take to increase officer application pools and retention?
Additional information about this topic
If You’d Like to Participate
Please contact me by replying to this newsletter via email (if you’re a subscriber) or messaging me on Twitter.
I’m searching for a better way to coordinate the technical end of things. While Substack is a fantastic venue and they’re always working on ways to improve the functionality of the platform, for now it doesn’t have some of the capabilities of platforms like WordPress.
We can still make this happen.
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