In line with his calls for police funding, President Joe Biden’s proposed budget announced Monday includes $17.4 billion for federal anti-violent crime enforcement, $1.7 billion above the planned 2021 level.
During his State of the Union address this month, Biden won the support of both Republicans and Democrats when he said, “We must all agree: The answer is not taking out police money. The answer is police funding.”
Bipartisan efforts to reform the police failed, and Republicans sought to associate Democrats with the “police defunding” movement and portray them as weak in dealing with crime in the run-up to the midterm elections. Biden’s proposal directly addresses those attacks. It calls for “strategies such as community policing” to address crime prevention and intervention.
The budget includes $1.7 billion for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to combat the illicit arms trade. $1.8 billion to help the US Marshals apprehend fugitives; $69 million for the FBI to support its investigations into violent crimes, including crimes against children, and in India; and $72.1 million for violent crimes prosecution.
Biden has repeatedly sought to distance himself from the policing movement, which was launched after the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May 2020. By proposing, he is trying to convey his plans to tackle violent crime.
Biden visited New York City Police Department headquarters in February, where he was joined by Mayor Eric Adams, a former police captain, shortly after two police officers were shot on duty.
“The answer is not to empty the police force,” Biden said during his visit. “It’s to give you the tools, the training, and the funding to be partners, and to be protectors.”
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