Jim Jordan: Ingrates Chased Away All Good Cops By Demanding They Not Kill Us

This is a familiar but still annoying tune.

The savage beating Tyre Nichols received, which eventually killed him, was so objectively awful, not even Republicans could defend the cops responsible. That’s arguably only because it was on video, but nonetheless, Republicans mostly agree that this vicious assault wasn’t ideal law enforcement. However, they aren’t exactly moved to action, either.

During an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday, Rep. Jim Jordan was all out of ideas on dealing with blatant police brutality. He said, "Well, I don't know that there's any law that can stop that kind of evil that we saw — that is just difficult to watch." It was probably more difficult for Nichols to experience.

“"I don't know that there's any law that can stop that evil that see saw" -- Jim Jordan on Meet the Press (!) on killing of Tyre Nichols”

— Aaron Rupar (@Aaron Rupar) 1675005094 

"What strikes me is the lack of respect for human life. So I don't know that any law or any training or any reform is gonna change ... this man was handcuffed and they continued to beat him."

You could pass laws requiring that cops are trained not to beat up people they've handcuffed, but Jordan seemed to think that the only effective reform is if the public stopped giving cops such a hard time.

PREVIOUSLY: Are Cops Just Too Broke, Stressed Out To Avoid Killing Black People? 

"We're not getting enough good people applying because of the disparagement on police officers," Jordan claimed. "They don't get enough people applying, taking the test to enter the academy to be an officer, because there's been this defund the police concept out there."

Although activists have advocated for defunding and even outright abolishing police departments as far back as the 1960s, the "defund the police concept" album, which also pairs perfectly with The Wizard of Oz if synched up correctly, didn’t become common until after George Floyd’s murder. It’s not as if all bad cops were hired after 2020, although that's emerged as the developing Republican narrative. 

“They’re settling on a narrative. And somehow it’s worse than if they had defended the cops. Police agencies have been relaxing hiring standards for a couple decades now. It isn’t “affirmative action.” And it isn’t due to lack of funding. (I’m also *pretty* sure it isn’t me.)”

— Radley Balko (@Radley Balko) 1675036488 

We’re literally just asking cops not to murder people. They’re sort of telling on themselves if that bare minimum standard somehow lowers their morale. You'll notice that Republicans don’t seem to think baselessly smearing educators as leftist hacks at best and pedophile groomersat worst has had a negative impact on teacher recruitment and retention (although it has). 

Jordan added, "There's been this attack on law enforcement, and you're not getting the best of the best."

Let’s make one thing clear: Tyre Nichols was attacked. George Floyd was attacked. Elijah McClain, Eric Garner, and so many others were attacked. The police, however, were not in any way “attacked” when people rightly demanded this violence stop. But Jordan’s blather is not unique. It’s common for cops to make the latest incident of police brutality all about them. 

After cops almost beat Rodney King to death in 1991, a 20-year-veteran of the LA police department told the LA Times, “I really feel like I got raped ... The department got raped and the community we’re sworn to protect got raped." The officer admitted the cops who beat King "stepped over the line" but the "frustrating part" for him was the perceived hit to the police's public image.

But it's not just that Jordan has thrown up his hands over police violence. He blames us for feeling outraged and not embracing the fiction that these incidents are mere outliers.

"These five individuals did not have any respect for life," he went on. "And again, I don't think these five guys represent the vast, vast majority of law enforcement. But I don't know if there's anything you can do to stop the kind of evil we saw in that video."

Presumably, if Jordan saw video of teachers torturing children, he wouldn’t shrug his shoulders and say there’s nothing he could do. He’d demand sweeping policy changes.

Wonkette's Michael Mora compared Jordan's remarks to the "West Wing" scene where George W. Bush stand-in Gov. Robert Ritchie responds to the news that a good man was shot and killed with a blasé, “Crime? Boy, I don’t know.” President Jed Bartlet declared that this was the moment "when I decided to kick your ass."

If you weren't already fully resolved to remove Jordan from any important position of power, his intentionally feckless response to Tyre Nichols’s brutal killing should’ve done the trick.

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[ Business Insider ]

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