Remotely thought that there was anything right about it. They create a vast majority of men and women in Law Enforcement are appalled by what happen. In that vast majority is also as a president has always said, already said, those are they good men and women of Law Enforcement who work hard every day to make their communities safe. Half of that rank and file, we applaud this meeting. We are happy to be here. There is no doubt in anybodys mind as the general already said. And there is room for improvement. And we know that. And we are happy to be at the table. We are happy to welcome that input and do what we can to be better, Better Police in this country, Better Police for our citizens and communities. We are happy to be part of this conversation. That is why we are here. President trump great job. Really good. Thank you, mr. President. Thank you all for joining. Over the last 3. 5 years have had the opportunity to grow very most with Law Enforcement. Weve grown very close together to bring criminal justice reform. The Law Enforcement community heard the cries from the committee and saw the they responded together to fix it. Those reforms make our communities safer and have made our system fair. That is the type of action that we have been able to accomplish by working together. But we have seen in the past is that the meeting together and i were together doesnt just result in reports. Nice talking points. A result in progress and actual policies that make peoples lives better and make communities safe area. It is an honor to Work Together and hopefully at this time where theres a lot of people in this country who are feeling different pain and feeling different concerns, Law Enforcement can be a leader in coming together and help us work towards bringing solutions i could bring this country forward. Thank you very much for the partnership. President trump thank you. Thank you so much, mr. President. Thank you all to Law Enforcement and the individuals in the room and the work that you do on a daily basis. You know, when i saw what happened with george floyd, it really made my heart sunk. It hit me to my core. As well as a lot of the other lives that have been lost. You know, as an africanamerican, i lived in southeast d. C. I am living a paradox where my wife is sometimes scared to walk the streets by herself. But then in the same vein, as an individual, i have also had the fear of being in certain neighborhoods or driving certain types of cars as an africanamerican just because of my relationship with the police. There are a lot of africanamerican males across the country that have stories like that that they can share. I think Law Enforcement is there to thread the needle and help us and protect us and not to be demonized. It has been very, very tough to see what has happened and impacting a lot of families across the country. I think we want real reform that can change communities, it starts with Law Enforcement and partnering with them. Not demonizing them. Because i have a lot of lawenforcement individuals individuals in my life. They are some of the greatest people i have ever met. We cant let some bad apples represent something that is the core of any community. We look forward to continuing to partner with you all to find solutions, because that is one thing ive learned with working under President Trumps leadership that we are not just about talk. We are about action. Communities leaning on your leadership, serve, for you to take action. It has been an honor to serve. I look forward to the discussion. President trump great to happy with us. Great job youre doing. Good afternoon, mr. President , mr. Vice president. Again, thank you for putting this important meeting together. Probably one of the most important meetings of our profession in my years as a Police Officer. You know, i wont echo some of the things that have been said about the horrific incident that brought us here today. What i will say is this. But it is going to take to make the appropriate changes in Law Enforcement is courageous leadership. And there are countless courageous leaders in Law Enforcement across this nation that are willing to step up to the plate. And look at new ideas to make our profession better and how we connect with our community. And i think one of the most important things, mr. President that you have done is you have listened. One of the things weve asked for for decades is a National Commission on Law Enforcement administration of justice. I want to thank you for establishing that, because now more than ever, that commission is incredibly important. President trump thank you very much. Mr. Bp, please. Vice president pence thank you, mr. President. We are here to listen. I want to thank the attorney generals who are here. Most especially, sergeant, chief, and others, thank you. Thanks for what you represent. Which is really the best of america. I told chief that my uncle was a Police Officer in chicago for 25 years. And i grew up with my three brothers and two sisters. With great memories of visiting my grandparents in chicago see my uncle in his uniform. Seeing him walk out the door, but his life on the line to protect and serve. I want to promise you that you have a president and administration that is always going to stand with men and women who serve and at great risk and great sacrifice to protect our communities. I am also very grateful, mr. President you here this afternoon and a desire to have a conversation about how we can improve. As jerry just shared a moment ago, this president has demonstrated his willingness to improve our Justice System in this country, passing historic justice criminal reform. I want to express my appreciation to Law Enforcement officials who are here at this table today who were with us when we brought that Bipartisan Legislation forward, mr. President. At your direction. We were always at the business of making a more perfect union. And we are going to be about that now. In the wake of the tragic event now almost two weeks ago, we want to hear from you about how we can improve. But improve in a way that it builds on that foundation. Really the finest men and women in this country, their bravest men and women of our country, the men and women of Law Enforcement. How we make sure that the men and women who dedicate their lives to Law Enforcement and take risks every single day to keep our communities safe. Are properly supported and that the resources from the federal government and the support from state and local authorities will continue to hold up those honorable men and women who serve and protect every day. Thank you, mr. President. Thank you to all of those who are here. Mr. President. It is an honor to be here with you. Ive been part of your team for two years. Running the office of American Innovation before that. What what i want to say very briefly is on the side of the white house, we gathered almost 1,000 black leaders from around this country who are celebrating black history month. In that celebration, you talked about having the lowest unemployment, the lowest poverty rate this country had ever seen. It was a remarkable feat that deserves such great celebration. But here we are three months later. It is a different time for our country. On friday, we had another major announcement. 2. 5 plus million jobs created in a time of such darkness and distraction. It reminded me that while we are in the midst of the Great American comeback, while we are going to be renewing and rebuilding and restoring this country that none of it is possible without our Law Enforcement. None of it is possible without real safety and Real Security in this country. Really for the Great American comeback with your leadership, mr. President as we cut poverty rates again and we unemployment again neil the president is meeting with top Law Enforcement officials. Weve got one with us right now in new York City Police commissioner. Commissioner, very good to have you, sir. With so much going on in your city including this nationwide push, it seems to cut back funding and or support for Police Department or less including the monies that you ar men and women get. But if you think of that . Neil, i think theres a lot of talk going on. I think cooler heads need to sit around a table and find a way out of this. There are some people that believe that the police are the problem. I happen to be as you know almost a 30year professional in this Law Enforcement community. I can tell you that the men and of this department are part of the solution. I think that when you talk about public safety, when you talk about communities, you talk about going to Community Meetings, ive said this a few times today. The usual thing i get hit at when i go to a Community Meeting as we want more cops. I think that is the general sentiment. We are at a moment in time right now where we need all to come together to find a way out of this. To have an open and honest discussion especially on the Law Enforcement side about why people feel as they do. How could we do better to make them feel safe and make sure we are treating all people equally. But any calls to deep lot of the police, i think is, you know, lord help us if that ever came to pass. I think we are the bedrock. We are the foundation, and we need to build on it. Neil nevertheless, you did seem to express support for mayor defazios plan to cut funding against the 6 billion allocated to Law Enforcement and more to the point, may be shipped of that into child and other related services. Some of the many women of your image and were surprised that you were okay with that. Are you . Are probably surprised everyone, neil. I stand by it. When i was the police commissioner, i wanted the announcements a huge initiative. I think that we can do a lot better. I think it is money spent on the youths money well spent. I think we dont get it right, we are going to be dealing with them in the criminal Justice System. And nobody wants that. I have a lot more i could tell you. I think it is and comment upon all agencies. And i will lead by example. We can find the money to fund Youth Programs in this city. I think we can do is. Neil but by taking it commissioner, but by taken out of monies right now allocated to police . Absolutely. And i stand by it. I think it is crime fighting. I really do. It is just crimefighting in a better way. There is no money number attached to that. If the devil is always in the details. When you are talking about giving kids something to do when you are talking about mentoring kids and talking about internships and so many other things, we are already doing this. And he just turn our back on these kids these are the kids that needed the most. And i think that we would be foolish not to spend the money on them. We will find the money if we have to be innovative. If we have to tighten our belt. But then there is a separate discussion with what you began. If youre having to talk about defunding the police again, i think we need saner, calm her people to sit around the table and really talk about what is going on. Neil let me ask you, commissioner. There is a good deal of reporting that you are frustrated by the lack of support you are getting. So much so and the pressure of handling it all that you wanted to resign. In fact, the head of the Police Benevolent association said you probably would. Can you clear that up right now . Are you at that point saying youve had enough i went out or what . Judging by my emails, i certainly have a lot of people that would like me to resign. I certainly expect that some of that came and started from that. That may be as definitive as i can. There is no way on earth that i would resign, particularly in this crisis. We need everyone pulling together. I fully support there is no way i would walk out on the men and women of this Police Department or this city during this time. Neil but you have been frustrated that youre caught between those and those that say that police are too forceful in putting down protests last week. You know, that a route that i got out of control and those who argue that you are too passive. No doubt, it is a tough position. You have to have thick skin in this. I think you know that, neil. Sometimes if you are an outsid outsider, this is the big leagues. There is too much at stake here. And we train our Police Officers. They are the most professional Police Department in the world. We expect a lot from them. They are in an extremely difficult position. This is a time that certainly all eyes are on Law Enforcement. I also think that this goes much beyond Law Enforcement when you talk about systemic racism. When you talk about opportunity. When you talk about disparities. And we are certainly a part of that. We own that. But when you talk about whats going on right now, i think everyone realizes this is not just about one city. This is a much larger issue. Neil you talk about a larger issue. Im wondering, congress as you know, commissioner is looking at ideas of redoing the way police operate. Some extreme cases wanted a fund. If youre not that. Others are doing a top to bottom rework on what they can and cannot do in minnesota as you know, they are moving toward forcing a no choke hold policy. Others are arguing no going into communities of color. And was looking for trouble. Some of it seems a bit extreme. Your thoughts on that and whether you would be open to any of the things that they are talking about. I think you have to listen. Here in new york city, we have a number of bills that are on the table, if you will as well at that the state level. It is important to know, for six years, we have been working collaboratively in reforming. If theres a long record of things put into place in the last six years. We continue to have an open mind. We will continue to work collaboratively, certainly. Many bills that cross our desk if you will. We have concerns about. I think the main point is having that open dialogue, having a discussion with all parties. Many different viewpoints here and getting to a place where it makes sense, where reform actually improves public safety, where trust is built up. Its a complicated issue for sure. We are absolutely open to reforms. It has just got to be done intelligently. And it has got to be done, i believe, with the greatest possible light shine on it to make sure we dont make any had done like inadvertent mistakes. Neil since this case erupted a couple of weeks ago, commissioner, in the case in new york some years back, this one has staying power. It has erupted into national, world protests. A lot of these protesters argued, we are not going away. A day in and day out, we are going to continue to demonstrate and protest for this. And your men and women are often targeted. They have not done enough. Theyre not sensitive enough, they are not open enough. Do you agree with their argument that africanamericans are slighted, that africanamericans often indeed are targeted . Do you think that is a fair rep . Are you saying being targeted by Law Enforcement . Neil yes. Yeah, and the one thing you didnt mention was, also these protests are happening at a time of at least here in new york city with the pandemic, which is still firmly in place. Neil you have a right about that. There are no restaurants open. On that saying that the protest wouldnt be happening otherwise, but it is certainly a factor in staying power. I absolutely do think they have a position. I just sat down wit for a halfr with an employee of the nypd, a very smart young africanamerican woman. Who told me i was doing a bad job on some things. She sent me an email. I said, go get her. I want to talk to her. I think we need more talking. I think we need more listening. I think we can all do better. Do you answer specifically, to the africanamerican communities have a point . Absolutely they have a point. If we say, no, we are going to be right back in his place with it seeks from doubts from now or five years from now. I think this is a very stressful time. It is a very difficult time on both sides. But it is an opportunity. And the question for me is, who is going to lead us out of this . How do we get out of this to get to a better place to get back to a place where we can all look back whether it is three knots from now or six months from now and say we made progress. Real progress. And i think that is what the protesters want. Quite frankly, that is what Law Enforcement wants as well. Neil commissioner, i know you have to run. We appreciate your patience. I did went to get your thoughts on the president s handling of all of this. He was very open and eager to use National Guardsmen in cities that were for a while or looking out of control. Washington, d. C. , came to mind. At the mayor there was a guest doing that, that it would only be a provocation. How do you feel about using guarded troops . At what point will they be advisable . Do you think it is more trouble than it is worth . Neil, no one is more upset. I will probably look back on those three days as i do every day. What could we do differently . We had pretty bad days they are. We four days of protests th