Fetterman Opposed ‘Tough on Crime’ Policies in Bid for Anti-Cop Group’s Endorsement

While courting an anti-police group’s endorsement in 2018, Senate hopeful John Fetterman said he opposed “tough on crime” policies and was “very excited” for the reforms proposed by a Philadelphia district attorney now facing impeachment over a massive spike in violent crime in the city.

Fetterman laid out his views of a “progressive agenda” in a questionnaire for Reclaim Philadelphia, a left-wing activist group that claims Philadelphia’s police budget is derived from money “stolen from communities.” Fetterman, who was seeking an endorsement in the race for lieutenant governor, told the organization he would use the office “as a bully pulpit for the larger issue of criminal justice reform.”

“There is a real opportunity to build a statewide platform that elevates and exposes the damage created by the school-to-prison pipeline, the prison industrial complex, and ‘tough on crime’ policies like ‘Stop and Frisk’ and cash bail,” said Fetterman, who expressed support for sanctuary cities and Philadelphia district attorney Larry Krasner, one of the left-wing prosecutors backed by Democratic billionaire donor George Soros.

Fetterman’s campaign ignored questions about his current views of Krasner and cash bail, but a spokesman said Fetterman supported police as mayor of Braddock, Pa.

“John has worked hand-in-hand with local police, so he knows the challenges they face and will support them with the funding they need,” said campaign spokesman Joe Calvello.

Fetterman’s past embrace of progressive criminal justice reform could hurt his chances as crime spikes across the country. Republicans have highlighted Fetterman’s positions on the issue as well as his tenure on the Board of Pardons in a series of blistering ads aimed at portraying the Democrat as soft on crime. A GOP group affiliated with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) has aired ads highlighting the Washington Free Beacon’s report that Fetterman cast the lone vote to free a man serving a life sentence for the first degree murder of a man he killed for money to buy heroin.

Republicans have also emphasized Fetterman’s endorsement of Krasner, who faces impeachment in the Pennsylvania legislature for “dereliction of duty” after violent crime skyrocketed in the city.

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