Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., said Democrats have written "poison pills" in the proposed police reform bill that make the measure a "non-starter" for his GOP colleagues in the Senate.
"We are in the same place," Scott told "The Story" host Martha McCallum.
"We want to eliminate the bad apples. What they want to do is go so far that they introduce poison pills in their legislation, and that's why [Senate Majority Leader] Mitch McConnell said it is a non-starter for those poison pills."
Scott has led the charge by Senate Republicans to bring legislative reform to stop police brutality and bring more accountability. He is expected to introduce his bill on Wednesday.
"We have an amazing opportunity to say to the American people, 'we hear you,'" Scott said.
But Senate Democrats ripped the GOP legislation, saying it won't hold police accountable enough to satisfy the national unrest that followed the death of George Floyd while in police custody last month.
However, Senate Democrats have already criticized the anticipated legislation, expressing skepticism that it will be comprehensive and aggressive enough to quell the national outcry following George Floyd's death in Minneapolis police custody last month.
Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., said to Politico: "This Republican proposal is heavy on gestures and light on meaningful reforms that will root out the systemic injustices that are baked into our justice system and policing practices. If we’re serious about confronting police brutality and excessive use of force, this bill is not the solution."
A competing bill introduced in the House by Democrats, which is also being pushed by Booker and Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., wants to lower the threshold for police officers to face legal actions for criminal behavior on duty. The House bill would also ban chokeholds and create a national database to track officers with criminal misconduct records.
"Will the Senate Democrats not come to the table and negotiate when you have three out of the four items that you want?" Scott said. "If they are more interested in having the issues than the solution, that tells me that partisan politics will roll this out, and Democrats of goodwill will come to the table and negotiate for the type of results that this nation wants."
"We have 75 percent of what they say they want," Scott said. "We can start there. If she [House Speaker Nancy Pelosi] is not willing to come to the table, if [Senate Minority Leader] Chuck Schumer is not willing to come to the table, I hope the American voters come to the table and say enough is enough."
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