Rand Paul: Obama should be able to figure out if police need bayonets

Rand Paul: Obama should be able to decide if police need bayonets

Rand Paul: Obama should be able to figure out if police need bayonets
(Image credit: iStock)

On Tuesday, the Senate's Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs attacked federal projects, like the Pentagon's 1033 program, which arm local police with military-grade weapons and equipment. Particularly vehement were comments from Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who spoke at length in opposition to the militarization of police. The Obama administration representatives being grilled did not share Paul's fervor:

RAND PAUL: Mr. Estevez, in the NPR investigation of 1033 program they list that 12,000 bayonets have been given out. What purpose are bayonets being given out for?

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Bonnie Kristian

Bonnie Kristian was a deputy editor and acting editor-in-chief of TheWeek.com. She is a columnist at Christianity Today and author of Untrustworthy: The Knowledge Crisis Breaking Our Brains, Polluting Our Politics, and Corrupting Christian Community (forthcoming 2022) and A Flexible Faith: Rethinking What It Means to Follow Jesus Today (2018). Her writing has also appeared at Time Magazine, CNN, USA Today, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, and The American Conservative, among other outlets.