Biden slammed by both sides of the aisle for SOTU claim that defunding police 'not the answer'

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Sen. Cotton on Biden’s SOTU address: I hope he announces no more half-measures on Russian sanctions

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., weighs in on President Biden’s performance ahead of his State of the Union speech.

President Biden broke with progressive members of his party during his State of the Union speech Tuesday night saying that the answer is "not to defund" police departments across the country. 

"We should all agree: The answer is not to defund the police," Biden said during his first official State of the Union address on Tuesday night. "The answer is to FUND the police with the resources and training they need to protect our communities."

U.S. President Joe Biden during a State of the Union address at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Tuesday, March 1, 2022. Biden's first State of the Union address comes against the backdrop of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent sanctions placed on Russia by the U.S. and its allies. (Jim LoScalzo/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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Biden invoked the names of slain NYPD police officers Wilbert Mora and Officer Jason Rivera explaining that he met with the families of the officers and "told them that we are forever in debt for their sacrifice, and we will carry on their mission to restore the trust and safety every community deserves."

"So let’s not abandon our streets," Biden said. "Or choose between safety and equal justice. 

 Let’s come together to protect our communities, restore trust, and hold law enforcement accountable. That’s why the Justice Department required body cameras, banned chokeholds, and restricted no-knock warrants for its officers."

Biden’s comment comes after years of Democrats calling for police departments across the country to be abolished and defunded in the wake of the death of George Floyd in the summer of 2020.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of Calif., listens as Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., closes his eyes as President Joe Biden delivers his first State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March 1, 2022. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, Pool)

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Many conservatives on social media criticized Biden and pointed out comments he has made in the past as well as attempts by Democrats, some of which have been successful, to defund police departments across the country.

"Joe Biden just said the answer isn’t to defund the police, it’s to fund the police," Outkick the Coverage founder Clay Travis tweeted. "But his party spent the past two years arguing to defund the police. Welcome to the party, pal."

"Don’t retweet this clip of Biden saying he would ‘absolutely’ ‘redirect’ funding away from police departments after he just made an empty promise to do the opposite at his #SOTU," Turning Point USA’s Benny Johnson tweeted.

"Why are Republicans standing up and clapping like seals to Biden’s lies about funding the police and securing the border?" Attorney Harmeet K. Dhillon tweeted. 

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Biden was also criticized by the official Twitter account of Black Lives Matter who suggested the group wasn’t amused by Biden’s support of police.

Progressive Congresswoman Cori Bush also slammed Biden’s support of police and criticized him for not using the phrase "Black Lives Matter" in his speech. 

President Joe Biden shakes hands with Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts as he arrives to deliver his first State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress at the Capitol, Tuesday, March 1, 2022, in Washington.  (Saul Loeb, Pool via AP)

"With all due respect, Mr. President. You didn’t mention saving Black lives once in this speech," Bush tweeted. "All our country has done is given more funding to police. The result? 2021 set a record for fatal police shootings. Defund the police. Invest in our communities."