Exclusive: Cotton Warns Democrat Warnock Will Be ‘Ardent Voice for Criminals’ If Reelected

CARROLLTON, Georgia — Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) expects the national crime wave in cities across America to worsen if Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) wins Georgia’s battleground Senate race.

Cotton spoke about the crime issue with Breitbart News in a brief interview Tuesday in western Georgia after rallying on behalf of Warnock’s challenger, Republican Herschel Walker.

“Crime will continue to increase, and more people will be the victims of violent crime in Atlanta and Georgia and all across America,” Cotton said. “Raphael Warnock has a radical pro-crime agenda.”

Cotton, a military veteran in his second term in the Senate, has been a vocal advocate for reducing crime. Cotton’s efforts on the issue include breaking with most of his Senate colleagues to oppose the First Step Act in 2018 and grilling President Joe Biden’s Supreme Court nominee on alleged criminals evading detainment.

Speaking on Warnock’s views and voting record, Cotton said the Georgia Democrat “supports eliminating the bail system, allowing people arrested for heinous crimes back on the streets to commit more crimes or to intimidate or even assault the witnesses or their accusers. He said that he wants to eliminate qualified immunity for police officers, which would make it easier for criminals to sue the law enforcement officers who try to keep our communities safe.”

While Warnock recently spearheaded passage of a bipartisan bill to fund small police forces, he also supports sweeping police reforms, such as the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which would increase restrictions on officers and eliminate qualified immunity.

Warnock, a longtime pastor, is also staunchly opposed to cash bail and said in a 2015 sermon:

When you think about the fact that America still warehouses 25 percent of the world’s prisoners, we shouldn’t be surprised when we see police officers act like bullies on the street. … You don’t get to be the incarceration capital of the world by playing nice on the streets. You have to work for that distinction.

Cotton warned, “If Raphael Warnock goes back to the United States Senate he will be an ardent voice for the criminals across the country, not for law enforcement.”

The race between Warnock and Walker, who has earned the support of about 70 percent of the state’s sheriffs, is neck-and-neck in its final month. Three different polls taken in October have shown Warnock with leads of around a couple points, well within the margins of error.

“The Senate is 50-50, and this is one of the most competitive races in the country, and Raphael Warnock is one of the most ideologically liberal senators in the country,” Cotton contended. “It would be a huge victory for the people of Georgia, and for the people of Arkansas, and every American who wants a Republican check on the Democrats’ radical agenda.”

Cotton relayed a similar message alongside Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee, during his speech to a crowd of hundreds of Walker supporters, signaling Senate Republicans view the Georgia race as critical to retaking the majority.