Battle brews over crime-fighting cash

[flashl]

Source: Miami Herald

The White House wants to cut funding for a popular anti-crime program to $200 million -- but wants $600 million for Iraqi police. Democrats vowed to put up a fight.

WASHINGTON --At the same time the Bush administration has been pushing for deep cuts in a popular crime-fighting program for states and cities, the White House has been fighting for approval of $603 million for the Iraqi police.

The White House earlier this year proposed slashing to $200 million the federal contribution to the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant program, named after a New York City police office who was killed in the line of duty. The program helps local law enforcement officials deal with violent crime and serious offenders. In 2002, the year before the Iraq War, the program received $900 million.

The administration and the Democratic-controlled Congress are headed for a showdown over the domestic money, probably next month. When the Senate last week passed the emergency Iraq War funding bill, it allotted $490 million for the domestic grants while keeping the Iraqi police funds intact.

...

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino did not single out the Byrne grants but made it clear the president is not happy with items that don't deal with the war on terror .... She talked about how Congress wants ``to ladle on lots of special projects. The president thinks that some of those projects may be meritorious. But they should have that debate outside of funding for the troops.''

Miami Herald

Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation/story/548859.html

[High Plains]

1. The Byrne grants fund narcs. Dems shouldn't demagogue this.

The Byrne grants mainly pay for the multi-jurisdictional anti-drug task forces. Do the Democrats really want to be in a position of saying we don't have enough drug war?

Kill the Byrne grants. Make those narcs make an honest living.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

2. Be careful what you wish for.

They just might "work" for a living, by seizing lots and lots of property, on slim and scant evidence and then keep it. They can do that, with not so much as a fare-thee-well.

[High Plains]

5. They already do that via asset forfeiture laws.

That's another battle down the road.

[pattmarty]

3. Fuck 'em, I say good, cut them both. We don't need more cops.....

.....what we need is to fix education, healthcare, tax system, banking regulations, infrastructure repair, an Apollo or Manhattan project to give us new forms of energy, and fuck, I'm tired of typing, but everyone gets the idea. What we DON'T NEED is more cops.

[YDogg]

4. good points

[Plucketeer]

6. I agree with you there!

Let's fix THE FRONT of the train and not just the caboose! :crazy:

[High Plains]

7. Back to the top with this. We need to tell our reps to knock this shit off.

No drug war demagoguery, please. No more funding for narcs, please.