Joe Biden comes out against 'defund the police' push amid mounting attacks from Trump after George Floyd protests

WASHINGTON – Joe Biden's campaign for president said Monday that he does not support defunding police, seeking to distance Biden from a growing message on the left that President Donald Trump pounced on to attack the presumptive Democratic nominee.

A Biden campaign spokesman staked out the former vice president's position on the "defund the police" movement for the first time in the wake of protests over the death of George Floyd. It comes after a veto-proof majority of the Minneapolis City Council pledged Sunday to dismantle its police department.

"As his criminal justice proposal made clear months ago, Vice President Biden does not believe that police should be defunded," campaign spokesman Andrew Bates said in response to questions from USA TODAY. He said Biden "hears and shares the deep grief and frustration of those calling out for change and is driven to ensure that justice is done and that we put a stop to this terrible pain."

Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden promises a female running mate.
Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden promises a female running mate.

A different message: Joe Biden campaign seizes on opportunity to contrast Trump's 'law and order' message

Throughout the weekend of protests inspired by Floyd's death May 25, Trump used Twitter repeatedly to try to tie Biden and other Democrats to the "defund the police" movement. Some activists have pushed to reduce funding of police departments and use the money to reinvest in social programs in response to the death of Floyd and other African Americans at the hands of police.

The Trump campaign spoke to reporters in a phone call Monday, alleging Biden "does not have the strength to stand up to extremists" on the left. Tim Murtaugh, the Trump campaign's communication director, pointed to Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, a Biden ally, pledging to cut as much as $150 million budgeted for his city's police department.

Murtaugh noted that Black Lives Matter protesters outside the White House wrote "Defund the police" on 16th Street in front of Lafayette Square.

"The question is, 'Where has Joe Biden been?' " Murtaugh said before the release of Biden's statement. "We're now days into this movement in the Democrat Party, and Joe Biden has managed only a feeble 'No comment.' "

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Biden pledged support for the central cause of Black Lives Matter protesters – fighting systemic racism – and proposed policing changes, but he risks alienating himself from some liberal voters if he does not adopt more radical moves. Biden and his wife, Jill, met Monday in Houston with members of Floyd's family.

Bates said Biden supports the "urgent need for reform," including funding for public schools, summer programs and mental health and substance abuse treatment "separate from funding for policing," so officers "can focus on the job of policing."

As for money specifically for police, he said Biden supports funding for community policing programs that improve relationships between officers and residents, diversifying police departments "to resemble the communities in which they serve" and equipping more officers with body-worn cameras.

"There are many police departments across the country who are seeking to realize these kinds of changes, but haven't had the resources to – and the Trump administration has, in fact, made obtaining those resources more difficult," Bates said. "This is at the core of Joe Biden's plan to bring transformative change to our criminal justice system."

Reach Joey Garrison and on Twitter @joeygarrison.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Joe Biden against 'defund the police' push after death of George Floyd