Why some Republicans switched votes on bills they previously supported – Roll Call

Three Republicans voted for Democrats policing overhaul last Congress, one of whom has since retired. The other two, Michigans Fred Upton and Pennsylvanias Brian Fitzpatrick, said at the time they wouldnt support a final bill, negotiated with the Senate, unless it included a compromise on ending qualified immunity, which shields law enforcement officials from legal accountability for actions performed on the job.

The measure stalled in the GOP-led Senate last Congress, but Upton and Fitzpatrick hoped suggestions they made during negotiations with lead House sponsor Karen Bass would prompt changes in the qualified immunity provision this Congress.

We made really, really good progress. And it was all for naught because they didnt take any of it, Upton told CQ Roll Call. So I said, here they are, coming back with the same bill. They didnt take the things that were working on, and so Im not going to be part of it.

Fitzpatrick, a former FBI special agent, said in a statement: If this legislation is recklessly implemented, there is no question that it would, in turn, do significant damage to the law enforcement profession and ultimately make communities across our nation less safe.

Bass said she never committed to changing the provision but wasnt upset about their stances. I understood why they switched their votes, and so its not a problem, the California Democrat said.

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Why some Republicans switched votes on bills they previously supported - Roll Call