‘We Must Maintain Law And Order’: North Carolina State Senator Threatens To Defund Cities That Defund Police

 A state senator in North Carolina is planning to introduce legislation that will cut off state funding for cities that defund the police, calling such measures “reckless.”

North Carolina state Sen. Chuck Edwards (R-Hendersonville) said, “When the legislature reconvenes next year, the first bill I will introduce will defund cities that defund police,” according to the Asheville Citizen-Times. “We must maintain law and order. While municipalities have control over their local budgets, the state legislature also has control of its budget, and I intend to help create an environment where public safety is a priority.”

Edwards’ proposed legislation comes amid turmoil in Asheville, a liberal bastion in the otherwise conservative western part of North Carolina. Edwards’ district shares a county with Asheville, which has drawn national attention recently for its city council’s calls for reparations and defunding of the police. Earlier this week, the city council agreed to defund the city’s Police Department by 3%, or $770,000.

A coffin full of dirt and manure was left in front of Asheville Police Department (APD) headquarters on Wednesday, prompting APD Police Chief David Zack to denounce the act as “threatening imagery.”

“Protesters have left a casket full of dirt and what we believe to be cow manure at the front door of APD,” the department tweeted.

“We’ve seen tombstones left at elected officials’ homes, we have seen wanted posters distributed through the city,” Zack said, according to WLOS. “One of the individuals who is on the wanted poster in addition to myself is now in the hospital with a skull fracture. Now this.”

“You are looking to incite violence against police, this just weeks after we buried Henderson County Deputy Ryan Hendrix, who was killed in the line of duty,” Zack scolded.

Republican congressional candidate Madison Cawthorn recently denounced anti-police rhetoric in an op-ed for The Daily Wire, writing:

A violent protest in Asheville, North Carolina, on Wednesday night resulted in serious injuries to bystanders and a brain injury to a journalist who works for SKYline News, a local outlet. Chad Nesbitt, a personal friend of mine, routinely puts his health and well-being on the line to bring factual news about real issues to the people of western North Carolina.

Late in the evening, a violent mob surrounded Chad and assaulted him, leading to a serious traumatic brain injury that may impact him for the rest of his life. The mob assaulted him for one reason: They disagreed with him. Left-wing agitators have come to Asheville with politics in their left fist and violence in their right. Enough is enough.

Sadly, these violent acts are becoming more common, especially in many Democrat-controlled cities. As cries to defund or abolish the police have risen in cities like Asheville, public order and safety have fallen. On the same night Chad was injured, two police officers were shot by members of Antifa in Louisville, Kentucky.