Even Seattle Mayoral Candidates Have Realized How Bad 'Defund The Police' Was

None of the six candidates running for mayor of Seattle support defunding the police. Think it was a great idea? Yeah, probably not.

As Danny Westneat of the Seattle Times wrote, the idea of defunding the police has lost its steam. Instead, the Seattle mayoral candidates appear to be favoring more police.

“I think the pendulum has swung against defund the police,” candidate Lance Randall, said. “You can see it in these forums — the people who used to talk about it either don’t talk about it anymore or are now actively backpedaling.”

Randall, who is black, added police are especially needed in minority communities.

“We’ve had several forums, and I feel as though there’s an assumption that people of color do not want police officers in their neighborhoods to protect them,” Randall said. “We need police officers. ...

“I guess I’ve grown weary of the City Council and others in the city attempting to speak and act on behalf of Black people, without asking and without considering the ramifications of some of these actions. We are having nightly shootings. As someone who was just in one of these shootings, I think I can say that this community desperately wants someone to respond when we call 911."

Fellow candidate Casey Sixkiller agreed.

“Look, we’re down 300 cops — over 20 percent of the SPD workforce,” Sixkiller said. “People no longer feel safe. It is damaging the reputation of downtown Seattle, and it is sending a message to visitors and tourists and businesses alike that we can’t fix it."