Though former Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of murdering George Floyd nearly a year ago, Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) said there is much more work to be done to increase police accountability.
Smith, whose hometown is Minneapolis, told Cheddar that people have to continue organizing and bringing grassroots movements to the forefront so this isolated and rare conviction of a police officer can become a more commonplace reality.
“I think a lot of people in Minnesota and probably around the country were feeling a sense of great relief, that in this most egregious murder that we all saw play out on our video screens, that there was accountability," she said. "But we know that the work ahead to really address these challenges and to fight to make sure that there is true equal justice in this country is a long road ahead of us, and we’ve got to get on it.”
Smith is encouraging her Senate colleagues to support the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which the House passed in March, though it is expected to hit a few roadblocks, particularly when it comes to altering qualified immunity for police officers. Such a change would make it easier for citizens to bring civil lawsuits against officers for police misconduct.
The bill would also eliminate several problematic policing tactics used by various departments nationwide, including no-knock warrants, like the one obtained by police in the lead-up to the killing of Breonna Taylor, and chokeholds, a restraint technique already banned by the NYPD before it was used on Eric Garner. It would also provide an easier path for the Justice Department to investigate patterns of misconduct.
“I believe that addressing qualified immunity is what it’s going to take to change the culture in police departments and to change the ways in which we then hold police departments and law enforcement accountable for excessive use of force,” Smith noted.
“I’m not naive. This is going to be difficult to get support for, but you can see some little inklings among some of my Republican colleagues who are willing to take a look at this," she said. "I want to thank and commend Senator Tim Scott who has shown a real interest in trying to address this because he himself as United States Senator and a Black man has experienced this kind of disproportionate effect of law enforcement on him personally.”
Drastically different from the Democrats’ reform bill, Scott (R-S.C.) introduced his own police reform bill, which includes incentives for cities to end the use of chokeholds but stops short of completely banning them. Smith said she is willing to negotiate and believes some bipartisan progress can be made since more GOP members may be recognizing that changes in American policing are necessary.
“The thing we cannot do is to take steps that are not that meaningful, that aren’t going to result in real change, declare victory, and then reduce the pressure to really change these systems that result in such disproportionate impact on Black and Brown people and all people of color,” she added.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg joined Cheddar's Michelle Castillo from South By Southwest to boost President Biden's bipartisan infrastructure legislation and talk about the big transportation issues of the day, including electric vehicle charging infrastructure and the future of public transit. "It means we have a huge wind at our back delivering on the kinds of transportation solutions that are going to define the 2020's 2030s, 2040s even," he said. "And that's what makes it exciting to come to South by Southwest and talk with some of the people who are following these technologies and ideas the most closely and talk about where we're headed." Buttigieg also touched on the "Don't Say Gay" legislation in Florida, noting that such legislative pushes were likely coming from politicians deflecting from lacking answers to pressing economic concerns, in his opinion.
Following President Biden's executive order that could lead toward regulating digital currency in the United States. Representative Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J. 5th District), the congressman responsible for proposing a bill to regulate stablecoins, digital assets backed by fiat currencies, joined Cheddar News to discuss the bill. "I just want to make sure that we're doing everything we can to be helpful to encourage this innovation and growth here in the United States," he said.
European antitrust regulators gave Amazon approval for its MGM acquisition deal. Amazon expects MGM's collection of content will help it compete in the increasingly crowded world of streaming services.
Lisa Whalen, managing director of automotive and mobility analysis at Morning Consult, joins Cheddar News to discuss Uber and Lyft's decision to enact price surcharges on riders.
Senator Jon Tester (D-Mont.) joined Cheddar News to talk about a range of topics including Sarah Bloom Raskin's recent withdrawal as a nominee to the Federal Reserve, the impact the Federal Reserve will have on inflation, and the ongoing crisis in Ukraine. "I think it's unfortunate she had to withdraw. I think she was very, very qualified for the position by everything she's done in her past, especially in the area of cyber," he said. "She would have been good to have on the Fed."
With a zero-covid policy in China, country officials are imposing lockdowns in the region in an attempt to control the spread. With China being home to about one-third of global manufacturing, these lockdowns are wreaking havoc on the already fragile supply chain, causing disruption to production of phones and cars alike. Suketu Gandhi, Supply Chain Partner at Kearney joined Cheddar's Azia Celestino to discuss.
Markets opened higher this morning as oil prices fall and investors await a decision from the Federal Reserve. Keith Fitz-Gerald, Chief Investment Officer, Fitz-Gerald Group joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
Catching you up on what you Need to Know on March 16, 2022, with updates on Ukraine and Russia, a container ship gets stuck in the Chesapeake Bay, Disney employees stage a walkout over the "Don't Say Gay" law in Florida, and NASA completes its first spacewalk of 2022.
With the Fed about to the announce a 25 basis point interest rate hike on Wednesday, what exactly does this mean for investors, consumers, and businesses?
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has summoned the memory of Pearl Harbor and the Sept. 11 terror attacks in an impassioned video plea to Congress to send more help for Ukraine’s fight against Russia.
