As voters prepare to cast their vote in the November election, Rep. Ruben Gallego’s (D-AZ-03) record on public safety has emerged as a central issue in the hotly contested U.S. Senate race. Gallego, who has served in Congress since 2015 and previously in the Arizona House of Representatives, faces scrutiny from his opponent, Kari Lake, and other critics over his stance on law enforcement and public safety.
Gallego’s efforts to reform police practices and limit military-grade equipment for law enforcement, as well as his public appearances and fiery social media posts has become a major focus in the contentious Senate campaign.
Since his election to Arizona House of Representatives in 2010 before moving on to represent Arizona’s 3rd Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives starting in January 2014, Ruben Gallego has built a substantial track record on public safety and law enforcement.
Arizona voters say public safety remains a top priority for voters in 2024. The Arizona Voters’ Agenda survey indicates that while immigration, border security, and water supplies dominate voter concerns, public safety continues to be a crucial issue, particularly in the context of the border crisis and community security.
However, a spokesperson for Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake told The Arizona Sun Times, “Through his decade-long career in Congress, Ruben Gallego has proven that he isn’t just soft on crime, but he’s downright anti-police.”
The campaign said if he were elected, “he would instantly become one of the most progressive, anti-police Senators in Washington, DC.”
The Lake representative added that Gallego’s distaste for “law enforcement, sympathy for criminals, and support of anti-police legislation would jeopardize the operational capabilities of our law enforcement agencies and put our communities at serious risk.”
Restricting Police Equipment
In June 2020, Gallego said police “don’t know how to use” certain weapons responsibly and in a “safe manner” because they’ve “never served in the military.” He elaborated that the police didn’t know how to use the “weapons in a safe manner” and that the weapons were unnecessary.
Gallego then sought to cut a program that gave underfunded police departments access to crucial weapons that protect their officers and communities.
He tweeted about his efforts to restrict police departments’ access to military gear. In a separate tweet, he highlighted these efforts to restrict the program that “provides military equipment to federal, state, and local police forces.”
In a 2020 press release, Ruben Gallego emphasized his commitment to demilitarizing local law enforcement by noting that he was a “cosponsor of Rep. Hank Johnson’s bipartisan Stop Militarizing Law Enforcement Act” and that he supported “President Obama’s restrictions on the 1033 Program brought forward in Executive Order 13688.” These restrictions, which Gallego backed, aimed to limit the transfer of military-grade equipment to local police forces, including “armored vehicles, weaponized aircraft, riot control gear, and certain types of weaponry.” However, Gallego pointed out in his press release that in 2017, “President Trump effectively rescinded Executive Order 13688,” reversing the limitations on the transfer of such equipment.
Doug Wyllie, an expert on police matters, argued that “armored vehicles and other so-called ‘militarized’ equipment are essential” for law enforcement, particularly in high-risk situations such as responding to violent crimes in progress, armed robberies, active-shooter incidents, barricaded suspects, and hostage situations. He criticized the legislators for signaling that they would “eviscerate the program” even amid ongoing riots. Wyllie described the ban on such equipment as “arbitrary,” pointing out that items like camouflage clothing, which may appear intimidating to the uninformed, are vital for officer safety, particularly in situations where visibility can mean the difference between life and death.
Anti-Police Rhetoric
The Washington Free Beacon penned an article, “Ruben Gallego ‘Honored’ to Have Anti-Cop Group’s Endorsement.” The Beacon reported that Gallego expressed that he is “honored” to have received the endorsement of The Indivisible Project, a progressive group that has “advocated for defunding police departments and dismantling U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).” Indivisible, which has received significant funding from liberal billionaire George Soros, has urged its supporters to “call your local officials and tell them to defund your local police department” and has also called for an end to deportations of illegal aliens.
The Beacon claimed that Gallego has not explicitly called for defunding the police, but “he has been critical of law enforcement, particularly in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death in 2020.”
Lake issued a strong statement on Gallego accepting the endorsement of Indivisible.
Gallego has a series of police tweets that side with Black Lives Matter, double down on systematic racism, and are supportive of protestors.
- Gallego tweeted “Peaceful protests aren’t bad guys, they are citizens. The bad guys were the ones behind the police line, not in front of them.”
- Gallego posted that “transforming the culture of law enforcement remains a matter of life & death.”
- Gallego called for “changes in operations of law enforcement” while claiming that “systemic racism & structural inequalities” in law enforcement have caused “deep wounds” in our country
- Gallego tweeted that “systemic racism shapes the relationship between law enforcement & Black/Brown Americans & it’s cost many lives.”
- Gallego threatened ICE agents saying, “When the worm turns, you will not be safe.” According to The Washington Times, this earned the rebuke from border patrol officers who claimed the comments “could incite violence.”
Dan Bongino a former Secret Service agent and NYPD officer turned political commentator took exception to Gallego’s statement about ICE.
“This congressman is warning ICE agents—that they will not be safe? Is that a threat? These people are crazy.” —@dbongino pic.twitter.com/xnnuFfNGzf
— NRATV (@NRATV) August 31, 2018
Defund The Police
In June 2020, Gallego attended a rally outside the Phoenix Police Department Headquarters, joining those calling for racial justice in the wake of George Floyd’s death. His participation came just a day after over 200 ANTIFA “protestors were arrested for rioting and two days after more than 100 individuals were arrested on charges including rioting and aggravated assault of a police officer.
At the rally, Gallego expressed his frustration with the government’s response to Floyd’s death, vowing to “resist.” He commented that the protestors were “a peaceful crowd while he was there,” despite the fact that others reported the event occurred amidst a broader backdrop of tense rhetoric and violence in Arizona, Washington, and across the nation. Protestors at the rally carried signs and wore shirts displaying anti-police slogans such as “Defund the police,” “ACAB,” “We don’t trust cops,” and “Abolish.” Gallego’s involvement was noted in the context of escalating tensions and widespread protests following Floyd’s death.
Restrictions & Ending Qualified Immunity
Gallego co-sponsored and voted for H.R. 1280, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2021.
H.R. 1280 would restrict the use of policing practices such as no-knock warrants. Gallego tweeted his opposition to no-knock warrants, calling them “dangerous” when he said, “Breonna Taylor was killed by police who broke into her home in the middle of the night without a knock, warning or justification.” The police assert that “they knocked several times and identified themselves as police officers with a warrant before entering the apartment.”
H.R. 1280 would also eliminate qualified immunity for police officers. The International Association of Chiefs of Police claimed this would limit their ability and willingness to respond to incidents without hesitation, putting their lives and others at risk.
Gallego favored gutting the filibuster – which had been protected by Arizona’s incumbent U.S. Senator Kyrsten Sinema.
He also tweeted, “It’s been one year since the House passed the For the People Act and the George Floyd Justice in Policing Acts. Now they’re stuck in the Senate due to Republican obstruction. End the filibuster. Get them passed.”
In another post, he said, “We will never get true, effective police reform till we have filibuster reform.”
Gallego also supports independent prosecutors in all police-related shootings and deaths. The National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO) is concerned that these independent prosecutors would lead to the indictment of officers even if they did nothing wrong.
No Bail, Covid Stimulus & Grants to Inmates
Gallego has repeatedly co-sponsored bills to end the money bail system with a federal ban and by cutting funding for states with pretrial cash bail systems. He co-sponsored H.R. 4611, the No Money Bail Act of 2016. Gallego also co-sponsored the No Money Bail Act of 2017, 2019, and 2021.
In 2021, Gallego voted for the American Rescue Plan Act, which sent almost $1 billion of COVID Stimulus checks to prisoners. The Washington Examiner wrote, “Nearly $1 billion in stimulus funds sent to prisoners in 2021, ‘terrorists and perverts’ got $1,400 checks.”
In 2019, Gallego co-sponsored H.R. 2168, which would have made criminals and sex offenders eligible for Pell Grants
2024 Election
This November, Arizonans will decide between Lake and Gallego for the U.S. Senate seat currently held Sinema. Gallego has not secured any endorsements from police associations for his 2024 Senate campaign. In contrast, Lake has garnered significant support from law enforcement, including endorsements from the Arizona Law Enforcement Association (AZLEA), the Arizona Conference of Police and Sheriffs (AZCOPS), the Phoenix Police Sergeants and Lieutenants Association (PPSLA), Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb, and former Border Patrol Union President Brandon Judd.
The Sun Times asked the Gallego campaign for comment but did not receive a response by press time.
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Christy Kelly is a reporter at The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Christy on Twitter / X. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Ruben Gallego” by Ruben Gallego.
