House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is pressing President Donald Trump for full disclosure about the law enforcement agencies and officers deployed in Washington, D.C., amid protests.
Pelosi penned a letter to the president detailing the breakdown of her demands on Thursday.
“We are concerned about the increased militarization and lack of clarity that may increase chaos. I am writing to request a full list of the agencies involved and clarifications of the roles and responsibilities of the troops and federal law enforcement resources operating in the city. Congress and the American people need to know who is in charge, what is the chain of command, what is the mission, and by what authority is the National Guard from other states operating in the capital.”
Making another push toward reform in law enforcement, Democratic lawmakers Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) and Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) are also proposing that officers be required to clearly disclose their identity and law enforcement affiliation, according to The Hill.
Pelosi echoed similar sentiments. In the letter, the top Democratic lawmaker detailed the problematic practice of officers refusing to provide identification.
“To make matters worse, some officers have refused to provide identification and have been deployed without identifying insignias, badges and nameplates,” Pelosi said.
“The practice of officers operating with full anonymity undermines accountability, ignites government distrust and suspicion, and is counter to the principle of procedural justice and legitimacy during this precarious moment in our nation’s history.”
She went on to reiterate the Department of Justice’s stance on the impact of officers working anonymously as she noted that it creates “mistrust and undermines accountability.”
“The Department of Justice itself in the past has stated that allowing officers to work anonymously creates ‘mistrust and undermines accountability,'” Pelosi said, adding, it also “‘conveys a message to community members that, through anonymity, officers may seek to act with impunity.’”
Following the death of George Floyd, protests have erupted across the U.S. Due to the footage that captured the moment that Floyd had his neck pinned by a former Minneapolis police officer’s knee, protesters are making mounting calls for police reform.
In addition to the protests, social media users have also taken to Twitter with a hashtag campaign called #BlueFail, which captures footage of police brutality — many of which have been captured over several days.
House Democrats are currently preparing legislation to be taken into consideration for efforts toward police reforms in the coming weeks.
