A U.S. senator from Virginia, known for his far-left anti-police sentiment, finally began supporting police officers Thursday.
“Officer Howie Liebengood and Officer Jeffrey Smith, Virginians who died because of the insurrection, deserve the official officer’s line-of-duty death designation,” Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) said on Twitter, attaching a column from The Washington Post.
Officer Howie Liebengood and Officer Jeffrey Smith, Virginians who died because of the insurrection, deserve the official officer's line-of-duty death designation. https://t.co/raJxVfAPSv
— Tim Kaine (@timkaine) January 6, 2022
No evidence exists that Liebengood or Smith “died because of the insurrection.” Both men tragically took their own lives in the days after the mostly-peaceful January 6 protest at the Capitol.
Kaine’s Monday comments were the latest in a year-long effort to use the deaths of the police officers as political clubs with which to batter supporters of former President Donald J. Trump.
But Kaine’s comments are a stark change of pace from his usual anti-police rhetoric.
“Far too many Black Americans have been victims of police brutality. Congress can no longer be bystanders. This legislation will improve police training, transparency, and practices to help address systemic racism. We must make clear that police misconduct has no place in America,” he said in 2020, demonizing police officers.
Far too many Black Americans have been victims of police brutality. Congress can no longer be bystanders. This legislation will improve police training, transparency, and practices to help address systemic racism. We must make clear that police misconduct has no place in America. https://t.co/7HStSBakVZ
— Tim Kaine (@timkaine) June 8, 2020
He referred to police as “inhumane” last summer.
“Nearly a year after George Floyd’s murder, we are still grappling with the inhumane and incalculable human and social costs of police misconduct,” he said.
Nearly a year after George Floyd's murder, we are still grappling with the inhumane and incalculable human and social costs of police misconduct.
But there’s another type of cost as well: the economic cost of police misconduct. My op-ed with @RepDonBeyer: https://t.co/yaFBgd8hPl
— Tim Kaine (@timkaine) May 24, 2021
He even suggested that police act is if black Americans do not matter.
“Breonna Taylor was wrongly killed by police and there is no justice or accountability. For those who ask why there is a Black Lives Matter movement—it’s because society keeps acting as if they don’t,” he said in 2020.
Breonna Taylor was wrongly killed by police and there is no justice or accountability. For those who ask why there is a Black Lives Matter movement—it’s because society keeps acting as if they don’t.
— Tim Kaine (@timkaine) September 23, 2020
Taylor died in 2020 when her boyfriend opened fire on Louisville Police officers, who were serving a warrant to search his apartment as part of a drug investigation. Return fire killed Taylor.
Democrats have often used the suicides of the Capitol Police officers to claim the events of that day were “deadly,” when only one person, pro-Trump protestor Ashli Babbitt was killed that day. Babbitt, unarmed, was shot and killed by Capitol Police.
The left also lied about the death of Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who it claimed was murdered by a protestor who hit him with a fire extinguisher, and that a severe allergic reaction from bear mace caused his death. In reality, neither of those things happened. Sicknick tragically died of natural causes during the protest.
Kaine’s office did not return a comment request Thursday.
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Pete D’Abrosca is a contributor at The Virginia Star and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Tim Kaine” by Tim Kaine. Background Photo “DC Capitol Storming” by TapTheForwardAssist CC BY-SA 4.0.
