On Wednesday, in the midst of nationwide protests against police brutality and for racial justice, sparked by the killing of George Floyd, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) penned an op-ed in The New York Times titled "Send In the Troops," in which he condemns the ongoing looting and rioting by several protesters, and suggests President Trump invoke the Insurrection Act to deploy the military to quell protesters:
"The pace of looting and disorder may fluctuate from night to night, but it’s past time to support local law enforcement with federal authority. Some governors have mobilized the National Guard, yet others refuse, and in some cases the rioters still outnumber the police and Guard combined. In these circumstances, the Insurrection Act authorizes the president to employ the military 'or any other means' in 'cases of insurrection, or obstruction to the laws.'"
However, this idea has been controversial among many, including Defense Secretary Mark Esper, with some calling it an assault on the First Amendment to the Constitution, while Gabriel Snyder, the Columbia Journalism Review's public editor for The New York Times, claimed that Cotton's descriptions of protesters were false. Additionally, several police officers have brutally attacked peaceful protesters through means such as using pepper spray and tear gas, so it stands to reason that the military would also use excessive force against peaceful protesters.
Despite the controversy surrounding the idea of what Cotton is proposing the president do, it is understandable why he would take this position. Of the top six contributors in the defense sector this election cycle, four of them have donated significant sums to the senator. These contributors are Northrop Grumman -- from which Cotton has taken $7,000 -- Raytheon Technologies -- which has given $8,500 to the senator -- Lockheed Martin -- which has donated $5,000 to him -- and General Dynamics -- from which he has raked in another $7,000. While he has not directly received campaign contributions from the remaining two companies -- L3Harris Technologies (L3Harris) and General Atomics (GA) -- he has taken money from leadership PACs that, in turn, have received funding from them.
Sen. Marco Rubio's (R-FL) Reclaim America PAC, which has given $5,000 to Cotton, has also taken $10,000 from L3Harris. Rely on Your Beliefs, a leadership PAC affiliated with Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO), has received $5,000 from L3Harris, while also having donated $10,000 to Cotton. Meanwhile, the senator has received another $10,000 from Sen. Dan Sullivan's (R-AK) True North PAC, which, in turn, has taken $2,500 from GA. Another $10,000 to Cotton has come from Sen. Roger Wicker's (R-MS) Responsibility & Freedom Work PAC, to which GA has given $5,000. The senator also has received $10,000 from Sen. John Thune's (R-SD) Heartland Values PAC, which has also taken $5,000 from GA. GA has additionally contributed $5,000 to Sen. Kevin Cramer's (R-ND) Badlands PAC, which has given an equal amount to Cotton. Finally, L3Harris and GA have respectively contributed $10,000 and $5,000 to Rep. Kay Granger's (R-TX) Common Sense Common Solutions (from which Cotton has taken $5,000), $5,000 and $2,500 to Sen. Martha McSally's (R-AZ) Thunderbolt PAC (which has given $10,000 to Cotton), as well as $5,000 each to Sen. Richard Shelby's (R-AL) Defend America PAC (which has donated to Cotton another $10,000).
Now knowing just how much Cotton has taken in campaign contributions from the top contributors in the defense sector, it should be apparent as to why he supports sending military troops to quell protests. In a time when peaceful protesters are already being brutally attacked, it is a shame that there are people in power who want to only exacerbate the issue, rather than to work to solve it.
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