Val Demings: 5 things to know about Biden's possible Democratic VP contender
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Now that former Vice President Joe Biden is the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, the search for his running mate is on and Rep. Val Demings, D-Fla., has been mentioned as a possibility.
Demings, a second-term congresswoman, gained national exposure as one of the House impeachment managers that made the chamber's case against President Trump in his impeachment trial earlier this year.
Here are five things to know about one of the top contenders in the 2020 veepstakes.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Rep. Val Demings, D-Fla., walks to a news conference before Pelosi sends articles of impeachment to the Senate charging President Donald Trump with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
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She was Orlando, Fla.'s first female police chief
Demings worked for the Orlando Police Department for more than 20 years, eventually ascending to the top of the department to become its first female police chief.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Demings' history as an officer is similar to the profile of other women in the Democratic VP nominee conversation who were prosecutors. Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., is a former California attorney general and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., is a former district attorney -- both have reputations for toughness.
The congresswoman's no-nonsense attitude could be what the Biden campaign is looking for to complement its gaffe-prone candidate's weaknesses.
She's a member of the centrist New Democrat Coalition
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Demings, who endorsed Biden on CNN's "New Day" during the Democratic presidential primary, seems to be a strong ideological fit for Biden too. She's a member of the New Democrat Coalition, a caucus of more than 100 Democratic members of Congress who, according to their website "are committed to pro-economic growth, pro-innovation, and fiscally responsible policy ideas."
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Demings is one of 10 members of the New Democrat Coalition on the House Intelligence Committee, including Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Biden was the favorite among the "moderate lane" in the Democratic primary, eventually gaining endorsements from fellow "moderate lane" candidates Klobuchar and former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg.
Her record as Orlando police chief could come up
As Demings was running for Congress in 2015, The Atlantic ran a story detailing nagging problems with the Orlando Police Department, including reports of millions in damages stemming from dozens of lawsuits alleging excessive force, among other things, both during and after Demings' time as police chief.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"This has been a problem for a while, through her administration and others. The problem is the leadership of the department,” Lawanna Gelzer, president of the National Action Network’s Central Florida chapter, told The Atlantic. “… She’s not going to get my vote.”
Demings' campaign materials often cite a precipitous drop in violent crime while she was in charge of the Orlando Police Department, but any issues in her time there may cause some Democrats to be uneasy with Biden looking too close at Demings as a potential vice president.
Demings forcefully defended her officers and department -- while acknowledging that police sometimes make mistakes -- in a 2008 op-ed for the Orlando Sentinel.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"The great reputation of our department far outweighs the unacceptable actions of one individual," Demings said. "However, when we make mistakes, we review the level of force used and train our officers accordingly."
She sponsored a bill to ban federal grant money from buying guns for teachers
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Secure Communities and Safe Schools Act, which Demings introduced in April 2019, would bar federal funds granted to schools to protect against terrorism from going to arm teachers.
"Arming teachers is a recipe for disaster—a reckless plan which will complicate active-shooter situations, as well as forcing teachers to take on not only the responsibility but also the hurt, pain, guilt, and liability when they find themselves out-skilled and out-gunned—with our children in the crossfire," Demings said.
She continued: "As a 27-year law enforcement officer, the solution is simple: not more guns in classrooms, but laws that keep guns out of the hands of people who shouldn’t have them."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The bill has not seen a vote in the House.
Her husband is also a former cop
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Demings' husband, Jerry Demings, was the first African American elected as Orlando County's sheriff, according to Orlando Weekly, and he now serves as Orange County's mayor.
Jerry is a graduate of the FBI National Academy and in 1998 became Orlando's first African-American police chief, according to his biography on the Orange County website.