Public officials should follow the courage of their police union convictions

Jun 12, 2020
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** Selective Outrage Toward Public-Sector Unions
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Ahead of the public opinion curve once again. Libertarians and fiscal conservatives have long highlighted ([link removed]) the need to reform increasingly militant police forces and the criminal justice system. Now the rest of the political spectrum, which has had a blind spot on this issue for decades, is rushing to catch up. CPC’s experience is a microcosm. Cecilia Iglesias, CPC Education Director and former Santa Ana City Councilmember, attempted to reform the Santa Ana police and was turfed out by a police union-backed recall campaign for her efforts. As the OC Register writes ([link removed]) in an editorial this week:

There’s a certain irony in watching the recent Santa Ana City Council meeting at which hundreds of residents expressed their concerns (via teleconference) about the city’s Police Department. They questioned a plan by the council to spend an additional $13.5 million on raises for police and other department-related spending.

Yet last month, city voters recalled Councilmember Cecilia Iglesias, who was one of two members who questioned the city’s budget priorities and called for reforming the department. She raised the idea of creating a citizens’ review panel to oversee police — a sensible idea that many cities embrace to combat police abuse.

Liberal politicians and mainstream media have woken up to the threats that police unions pose: Numerous California Democrats promised ([link removed]) this week not to take political donations from police unions. Even the New York Times, which has never met a union it doesn’t like, highlights ([link removed]) the union problem:

Unions can be so effective at defending their members that cops with a pattern of abuse can be left untouched, with fatal consequences. In Chicago, after the killing of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald by Officer Jason Van Dyke, it emerged that Van Dyke had been the subject of multiple complaints already.

But a “code of silence” about misconduct was effectively “baked into” the labor agreements between police unions and the city, according to a report conducted by a task force.

Police unions have traditionally used their bargaining agreements to create obstacles to disciplining officers. One paper by researchers at the University of Chicago found that incidents of violent misconduct in Florida sheriff’s offices increased by about 40% after deputies gained collective bargaining rights.

They should now follow the courage of their convictions: Left-wing politicians and the mainstream media should take their newfound opposition to police unions to its logical conclusion and examine the detrimental impact of all government unions. The union structures that perpetuate systemic police violence that disproportionately hurt minorities also propagate systemically bad public schools that overwhelmingly impair black and brown students. As the OC Register edit board writes ([link removed]) this week: “If lawmakers in California renounced donations from law-enforcement unions, perhaps we’d see policies that are more in keeping with the public-safety needs of Californians. But the same goes for unions representing public employees working in key sectors including education, firefighting and local government as well.”

CPC contributor Larry Sand expands on this contradiction in his latest piece ([link removed]) :

One look at Derek Chauvin’s record reveals where the real problem lies. He had 18 complaints ([link removed]) of varying intensity filed against him, all of which were dismissed with a slap on the wrist with the help of his union, the Minneapolis Police Federation. Had Chauvin worked for a private employer in a non-union setting, he would have received his walking papers years ago, and George Floyd would still be alive….

[Similarly,] how many unfit teachers lose their jobs? Hardly any. In California, the collectively bargained dismissal statutes are so laborious that many administrators don’t even bother trying to navigate the 10-step process that must be taken before a dismissal is finalized. Not surprisingly, almost no tenured teacher loses their job for any reason….

The best thing we can do is rein in public employee unions, which work hard to prevent any sensible reform, protect bad actors, have no accountability, and buy and sell politicians to make sure their self-serving policies remain in place. Your life could depend on it, as could your child’s future.


For the Friday commute: CPC President Will Swaim and Board Member David Bahnsen also discuss this selective opposition to public-sector unions in their latest episode ([link removed]) of National Review’s Radio Free California.

Federal bailout of California’s pensions is in jeopardy: Last week’s impressive May jobs numbers have put plans for a “Phase 4” federal stimulus, intended to bail out state and local governments, on pause. White House economic adviser Stephen Moore said ([link removed]) that the jobs numbers mean, “We don't need it now. There's no reason to have a major spending bill.” Indeed, no reason for the country, but 1.5 trillion ([link removed]) reasons for California’s underfunded pensions plans.

Meanwhile, government housing bureaucracy expands: This week, the California State Assembly passed ([link removed]) a bill to create a state Office of Homelessness. The law would create a Secretary of Housing Insecurity and Homelessness position and implement the findings from 1) the Little Hoover Commission, 2) the California State Auditor, 3) the Legislative Analyst’s Office, and 4) Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Council of Regional Homeless Advisors. That’s a lot of bureaucracy when much of the solution can be summed up by three words: build, baby, build!

Another CA policy to worsen the housing shortage: California lawmakers introduced ([link removed]) a new bill this week to ban landlords from evicting tenants for not paying rent during the coronavirus emergency – extending expiring provisions. Imagine you’re thinking of renting out property. Does this law increase or decrease your likelihood of doing so? In the words ([link removed].) of Milton Friedman:

One of the great mistakes is to judge policies and programs by their intentions rather than their results. We all know a famous road that is paved with good intentions. The people who go around talking about their soft heart . . . I admire them for the softness of their heart, but unfortunately it very often extends to their head as well.

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Jordan Bruneau
Communications Director
[email protected]


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