White House National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien said that there is no systemic racism in US law enforcement, just a few bad apples.
O’Brien said on CNN’s State Of The Union, “No, I don’t think there’s systemic racism. I think 99.9% of our law enforcement officers are great Americans and many of them are African-American, Hispanic, Asian. They’re working the toughest neighborhoods, they’ve got the hardest jobs to do in this country, and I think they’re amazing great Americans, and they’re my heroes, but you know what, there are some bad apples in there.”
He went on to say that there are some cops who are just bad and that they needed to be rooted out.
The bad apple strategy is a favorite of Republicans. Mass shooters are never a symptom of a larger problem. They’re just bad apples. Racism is law enforcement isn’t a societal problem. There’s just a few bad cops on the streets. It is the standard playbook for rug sweeping issues that the GOP doesn’t want to admit exists.
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Video:
“No, I don’t think there’s systemic racism,†White House National Security adviser Robert O’Brien says about US law enforcement agencies. “There’s a few bad apples that are giving law enforcement a terrible name†#CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/Tdwo9XfTQ7
— State of the Union (@CNNSotu) May 31, 2020
Law enforcement officers do a dangerous job. They put their lives on the line every single day in their communities. O’Brien’s answer painted an either/or picture that ignored the possibility that there can be both systemic racism, and good law enforcement officers on the streets.
The Trump administration is not only going to do nothing about the problem. They are refusing to admit that there is a problem.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
