These 6 Members Of Congress Could Help Determine The Fate Of Qualified Immunity

Conservative News DailyApril 26, 2021

According to polling, the American people are in agreement: police reform of some kind is needed across the country. What those reforms should be, however, are still up for debate.

While the Left and Right often differ on what sort of reform is necessary, there is one topic which both sides increasingly agree needs reform: qualified immunity, or the idea that a civil servant, like law enforcement officers, cannot be sued and held personally responsible for actions violating a person’s constitutional rights unless a court ruled those actions were “clearly established” and deemed unconstitutional.

While Democrats want to completely do away with qualified immunity, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) has another proposal: instead of eliminating qualified immunity, plaintiffs could bring lawsuits against specific police departments and law enforcement agencies, not individual officers.

“There is a way to put more of the onus or the burden on the department or on the employer than on the employee. I think that is a logical step forward, and one that as I’ve spoken with Karen Bass over the last several weeks, it’s something that the Democrats are quite receptive to,” Scott told reporters last week, according to CBS News.

Scott is currently in negotiations with Democrats over the issue of qualified immunity, something Bass said “there’s a lot of room for discussion” around.

With negotiations on the table, here are six members of Congress who could be vital to the push for qualified immunity reform.

Congresswoman Karen Bass (D-CA)

Bass appears to be open to changing what qualified immunity looks like, even if it means keeping it on the table.

“What’s most important to me and to others is that we have to find a way to hold officers accountable to prevent these shootings from occurring,” she explained on MSNBC’s “The Sunday Show.”

“I do think that we need to look at training. You know, I don’t know the quality of the training but maybe it’s time to say more emphasis needs to be put on de-escalation,” Bass said. “We need to look at other ways to address situations. I know that when police officers are trained to shoot they’re trained to shoot to kill, not to wound.”

“So I think a lot needs to be examined in this time period,” she said.

.@RepKarenBass discusses the possibility of compromise in the Senate that could help pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2020. #SundayShow pic.twitter.com/8k1gID3WFs

— The Sunday Show with Jonathan Capehart (@TheSundayShow) April 25, 2021

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV)

Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) seems to favor Scott’s proposal on qualified immunity.

“I definitely support Sen. Scott’s efforts,” Capito said. “I was on the Justice Act that got caught up in politics in the fall. I think he has redoubled his efforts and is working across the aisle.”

“I think the time is now. I think there’s a real – and it’s probably past due – a real want to get this done and I think to get it done right,” she explained on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

The senator said it’s imperative law enforcement agencies continue recruiting

“Qualified immunity is definitely a hot button issue. I think the way that Sen. Scott has formulated some revisions to qualified immunity is on the table right now. I know he’s in active negotiations on this piece,” Capito stated. “I know that’s a big piece of this.”

Republican Sen. Shelley Moore Capito says she supports her colleague Sen. Tim Scott’s efforts on police reform saying that “the time is now.” #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/lcud8R2EzA

— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) April 25, 2021

Congresswoman Cori Bush (D-MO)

Congresswoman Cori Bush is not willing to compromise on eliminating qualified immunity.

“You know, right now, we need to end qualified immunity. Period. That’s my stance,” Bush said on “Inside Politics Sunday.”

According to the first-term congresswoman, this is an area she’s not willing to compromise on.

“We compromise, we die. We compromise, we die,” she said. “I didn’t come to Congress to compromise on what keeps us alive because it holds police officers specifically accountable because the thing is this: if you don’t hurt people, if you don’t kill people, if you are just and fair in your work, then do you need the qualified immunity anyway?”

We need to end qualified immunity. And I’m not willing to compromise on that. pic.twitter.com/3vjtn4m1IW

— Congresswoman Cori Bush (@RepCori) April 25, 2021

Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL)

Sen. Rick Scott didn’t give a clear indication about which way he’s falling on qualified immunity, meaning he could likely be persuaded one way or another.

“I think what we ought to do is, let’s find best practices. If you go back to what Tim Scott proposed, let’s have more transparency so we can find out what’s working and what’s not working,” Rick Scott told ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos. “In his bill we had incentives to stop chokeholds, as an example. I think you start with more transparency.”

According to the Florida senator, it’s imperative for legislators to meet with law enforcement agencies and hear directly on what could be improved upon.

“You sit down with law enforcement and say, ‘Okay, so what can we do better and why are some officers better, some departments better than others,’ rather than saying, ‘Oh, everybody is doing the wrong thing’ and creating an incentive for people not to do their job,” Scott explained.

Sen. Rick Scott tells @GStephanopoulos for police reform negotiations, “I think what we ought to do is, let’s find best practices … let’s have more transparency so we can find out what’s working and what’s not working.” https://t.co/zhHlOdbFOz pic.twitter.com/GPjrr53lzk

— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) April 25, 2021

Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI)

Hawaii Sen. Mazie Hirono, however, doesn’t appear to be interested in Scott’s bill, based on what she saw last fall.

“The last time I look at Tim’s bill … it just didn’t go far enough,” Hirono told CNN’s Jake Tapper. “It didn’t address the kind of abuses and concerns that we’ve all seen. And so, unless the bill matches the realities of the disparaging policing, I don’t know that it’s going to get us very far.”

Democratic Sen. Mazie Hirono discusses the “George Floyd Justice in Policing Act” and says GOP Sen. Tim Scott’s compromise bill on police reform doesn’t go far enough. “It didn’t address the kind of abuses and concerns that we’ve all seen.” pic.twitter.com/0DKWltzr1P

— The Lead CNN (@TheLeadCNN) April 21, 2021

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC)

South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham agreed with Sen. Tim Scott’s decision to reform qualified immunity.

“We would have police reform in the last Congress, but Chuck Schumer and Kamala Harris made a conscious effort to block bringing up Tim Scott’s reform bill,” Graham said on “Fox News Sunday.”

“Qualified immunity is a very big deal. If you want to destroy policing in America, make sure that every cop can be sued when they leave the house. There’s a way to find qualified immunity reform. Take the cop out of it,” Graham explained. “My idea, along with Sen. Scott, is you can’t sue the police officer, you sue the department if there’s an allegation of civil rights abuse or constitutional right abuse.”

There are a few legislators that are open for discussions and debate. Others aren’t interested in reforming qualified immunity. Instead, they’re hellbent on eliminating it in its entirety. Only time will tell how this debate shakes out.

Beth Baumann is a Political Reporter and Editor at The Daily Wire. Follow her on Twitter @eb454.

The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

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