National Security Adviser Denies Systemic Racism In Police Forces: ‘Few Bad Apples’

20 January 2020, Berlin: Robert C. O'Brien, National Security Advisor to the United States of America, attends a press conference at the U.S. Embassy in Berlin. After more than 20 years, Serbia and Kosovo are prepari... 20 January 2020, Berlin: Robert C. O'Brien, National Security Advisor to the United States of America, attends a press conference at the U.S. Embassy in Berlin. After more than 20 years, Serbia and Kosovo are preparing to resume an air link between their two capitals. Photo: Kay Nietfeld/dpa (Photo by Kay Nietfeld/picture alliance via Getty Images) MORE LESS
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White House National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien denied that systemic racism is a problem in law enforcement agencies across the country during an interview on CNN Sunday morning.

After CNN’s Jake Tapper pointed out that George Floyd is hardly the only unarmed black man killed by police and asked whether he thinks systemic racism is a problem in police forces, O’Brien denied that’s the case.

“No, I don’t think there’s systemic racism,” O’Brien said. “I think 99.9% of our law enforcement officers are great Americans and many of them are African-American, Hispanic, Asian. They’re working in the toughest neighborhoods, they got the hardest jobs to do in this country.”

O’Brien went on to praise law enforcement for being “amazing, great Americans” before arguing that “there are some bad apples in there.”

“There are some bad cops that are racist, there are cops that maybe don’t have the right training,” O’Brien said. “There are some that are just bad cops and they need to be rooted out because there’s a few bad apples that are giving law enforcement a terrible name.”

O’Brien then added that “there’s no doubt there’s some racist police” before reiterating that he thinks “they’re the minority.”

“I think they’re the few bad apples and we need to root them out,” O’Brien said, before touting that he’s “proud” law enforcement professionals are handling nationwide unrests over the mistreatment of African Americans “with restraint.”

“We do have to get rid of those that are like the dirty cop that killed George Floyd, we need to get rid of those people,” O’Brien said.

Watch O’Brien’s remarks below:

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Notable Replies

  1. That ain’t gonna fly.

  2. “No, I don’t think there’s systemic racism,” O’Brien said. “I think 99.9% of our law enforcement officers are great Americans and many of them are African-American, Hispanic, Asian. They’re working in the toughest neighborhoods, they got the hardest jobs to do in this country.”

    The reputation of the Minneapolis’ police department as a leader in police reforms came to an end well before Floyd’s death. In July 2017, Officer Mohamed Noor fatally shot Justine Ruszczyk Damond, a yoga teacher from Australia who had called 911 to report a possible sexual assault near her home. Harteau resigned days later.

    Noor, a Somali-American, was sentenced to 12 years in prison for shooting Damond, a white woman. The city of Minneapolis paid a $20 million settlement to Damond’s family and lawyers. Because Noor didn’t record his encounter with Damond on his body camera, the police department updated its policy and now requires cops to activate their body cameras while traveling to a call. Officials said that the officers involved in the Floyd case all had their cameras turned on.

  3. Avatar for vonq vonq says:

    Honey, learn your lesson from the Vietnam War being broadcast into people’s living rooms every night. The violent police reaction to peaceful and lawful protests are not going to end well for the GOP.

  4. O’Brien went on to praise law enforcement for being “amazing, great Americans” before arguing that “there are some bad apples in there.”

    “There are some bad cops that are racist, there are cops that maybe don’t have the right training,” O’Brien said. “There are some that are just bad cops and they need to be rooted out because there’s a few bad apples that are giving law enforcement a terrible name.”

    O’Brien then added that “there’s no doubt there’s some racist police” before reiterating that he thinks “they’re the minority.”

    from The Marshall Project

    Lt. Bob Kroll, president of the Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis, also didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment. Kroll, who is white, was once named in a racial discrimination lawsuit against the police department brought on by a group of black cops, including an officer who is now the current police chief. The 2007 suit alleged that Kroll openly wore a “white power” badge on his motorcycle jacket.

    also

    https://twitter.com/therecount/status/1266845479268212736

  5. According to multiple sources familiar with hostage negotiation, and O’Brien personally, his experience is still lacking for the particular demands and challenges of the national security adviser role.

    One source — a staffer to a Democratic senator on the Foreign Relations Committee, worried that O’Brien would prove too deferential to Trump
    .
    This says it all.
    "too deferential to Trump"

    tRump and Barr have inserted themselves in the George Floyd murder. What else would he say.

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