Texas Governor Abbott: 'We Will Defund Any City that Tries to Defund Police'
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced on Thursday that any city in his state that takes measures to defund law enforcement agencies will find itself denied state dollars.
In essence, Abbott intends to defund the defunders.
It isn’t clear how far Democrats, who now control the White House, in addition to the Senate and the House of Representatives, intend to go with their anti-cop initiatives. One would assume that after they’ve cashed in on the “defund the police” movement, they will avoid the insane ideas that would leave citizens at the mercy of criminals.
But Texas, as Abbott signaled on Thursday, isn’t about to let the ludicrous neo-Marxist politics of those who spent 2020 waging a war against American civility infect the Lone Star State.
In a video message posted on Twitter, Abbott announced measures are being taken to ensure Texans can count on first responders, and vice versa.
“Texas is a law-and-order state, and we’re going to keep it that way,” Abbott wrote.
“Hi, this is Gov. Greg Abbot at the headquarters for the Texas Department of Public Safety, where we had a roundtable discussion with law enforcement officials from across the entire state of Texas, where we’re focusing on legislation to make sure that we fully fund police in Texas,” he said in the video.
“We will defund any city that tries to defund police,” the governor added.
“We also talked about bail reform to make sure we are not letting back out on the streets people who are dangerous criminals who just go and kill somebody else,” Abbott concluded. “If they have committed a heinous crime, they should not be let back out onto the streets.”
Texas is a law-and-order state, and we’re going to keep it that way.#TexasBacksTheBlue pic.twitter.com/mEUrpsJ94g
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) January 21, 2021
Austin’s KXAN-TV reported that the roundtable and the following discussion were aimed at the Texas capital city. The city’s council last year discussed directing funds away from its police department, which drew the ire of Abbott and other Republicans.
Per KXAN, Abbott made additional comments after his roundtable meeting Thursday.
“It would give cities a clear choice,” he said regarding the Democrat-run urban centers where leadership might feel inclined to give in and target those whose job it is to protect public safety.
“Either fulfill their duty to keep residents safe or lose access to all of their tax revenue,” Abbott said at a media briefing.
Abbott has not ruled out assigning the Texas DPS to take control of policing Austin should the city’s Democrats leave citizens vulnerable to crime and criminals.
“What I know is what the city council’s position is,” the governor said. “We made it clear with what they’ve done in regards of defunding police is unacceptable.”
Texas has proved a sanctuary for reason and sanity since the summer, when the establishment media and leftist activist turned a traditional paradigm on its head. By June, cops were the bad guys, and looters, killers and drug peddlers were praised as heroes.
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That sentiment has met a real “Don’t Mess with Texas” attitude by Lone Star State Republicans. Perhaps Abbott and the other adults won’t have to intervene.
During the 2020 election, Democrats were given a strong message by voters that radical concepts such as “defund the police” are not winning propositions. Democrats now cling to a slim majority in the House.
Texas, though, doesn’t appear to be willing to take any chances. Those seeking to upend the peace and civility of the state’s large cities will be met with resistance at the state level, which is one more reason Texas is a model state.
Hopefully, the country’s second-most-populous state will remain a lucid example for good governance. In a reversal of the Dust Bowl-era migration from the region to the west coast, Texas has attracted its fair share of transplants from California in recent years, and many are predicting it will soon become a full-on battleground state.
Those moving in and enjoying all Texas has to offer ought to consider leaving their old voting habits behind.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
