January 30, 2013 04:12 PM UTC

Chutzpah: GOP Senator blames GOP budget cuts for fewer cops

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• by: JeffcoBlue

(Promoted by Colorado Pols)

Think Progress reports on Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina in today's gun control hearing in Washington. Speaking to the police chief of the city of Baltimore, Maryland:

GRAHAM: The point is, we have different perspectives on this. The reason I will oppose the legislation, Chief Johnston, is because i respect what your do as a lot — what you do as a law-enforcement officer. Has your budget been cut?

JOHNSON: Yes.

GRAHAM: Do you think it be cut in the future?

JOHNSON: I am optimistic that it is not.

GRAHAM: Well I hope your right, but I can tell people throughout this land, because of the fiscal state of affairs we have, there will be less [SIC] police officers, not more, over the next decade…I honest to god believe that if we arbitrarily “say nobody in this country can own a 10-round magazine in the future, the people who own them are the kind of people we’re trying to combat to begin with.” There can be a situation where a mother runs out of bullets because of something we do here.

Do you realize how sick this is? Here is a Republican, a member of the party whose sworn mission is to cut the budget, flat-out telling the police chief of Baltimore that Republican budget cuts are going to reduce his ability to protect the public from criminals. And instead of being a bad thing that we should avoid by not cutting police officers, that is instead a reason for Republicans to oppose legislation to ban the high capacity clips used at Newtown and the Aurora shootings. In the future, says this honest Republican, there will be fewer cops. Because, says the honest Republican, Republicans intend to cut their funding. So you'd better be ready, says the very same Republican, to defend yourself with high capacity clips once they do.

Do you realize how sick this is?