Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joseph R. Biden on Monday said he doesn’t support defunding the police — a movement among some on the left that has taken hold after the killing of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police last month.
“No, I don’t support defunding the police,” Mr. Biden told CBS News. “I support conditioning federal aid to police, based on whether or not they meet certain basic standards of decency and honorableness and, in fact, are able to demonstrate that they can protect the community and everybody in the community.”
Mr. Biden met on Monday with the family of Mr. Floyd, a black man who died on Memorial Day after a former police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes. A memorial service for Mr. Floyd in his hometown of Houston is set to take place on Tuesday.
The former officer, Derek Chauvin, has been charged with second-degree murder and the incident has sparked a wave of protests across the country over the last several weeks.
Mr. Biden called the Floyds an incredible family.
“His little daughter was there, the one who said, ‘Daddy’s going to change the world.’ And I think her daddy is going to change the world,” Mr. Biden said. “I think what’s happened here is one of those great inflection points in American history, for real, in terms of civil [liberties], civil rights and just treating people with dignity.”
President Trump has played up themes of law and order as officials in some localities across the country, including Minneapolis, look to cut funding for or revamp local police departments.
“We won’t be defunding our police. We won’t be dismantling our police,” the president said on Monday.
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