Sangamon Sun

State Sen. Steve McClure (R-Springfield) sees no winners emerging from the movement to defund police departments across the country.

“If you defund the police and take them away, the first thing that happens is all the poor neighborhoods that depend on police to keep them safe become endangered,” McClure told the Sangamon Sun. “As a prosecutor, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve looked over evidence and seen how 911 calls to police have saved lives. I think for a lot of people the idea of there being no police to call really gets scary.”

The movement to do away with police departments has been sweeping the country since the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis on Memorial Day, leading to protests and violence across the country. Minneapolis City Council members were among the first to broach the possibility of permanently doing away with their city's police department, and the idea quickly gained the support of U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota) and the leaders of the Chicago Public Schools.

McClure said he wants to see cooler heads prevail.

“You look at an incident like what happened with George Floyd and know that reforms are desperately needed,” he said. “At the same time, I think reasonable people know that police are an essential element of society.”

McClure said he intently listened when Chicago Mayor Lori Lighfoot recently expressed her support for the idea for defunding, but never heard any specifics.  

“It’s hard to say what she meant because all she gave was a bunch of generic talking and no actual policies,” he said. “She’s been on record as being a total hypocrite in every way possible. This is the same woman who goes out and breaks up kids playing a basketball game with masks, but encourages large groups to gather to protest without abiding by any COVID rules or guidelines.”