Chris Christie Would Reinstate 'Stop-And-Frisk' In NYC, Blames De Blasio, Obama For Crime Spike

If Chris Christie were to run in and win a mayoral election in New York City, he would bring back a racially discriminatory police strategy that current Mayor Bill de Blasio did away with two years ago. Christie, who is governor of New Jersey, told the hosts of MSNBC’s Morning Joe talk show Tuesday that he would revive the “stop-and-frisk” practice because of the recent increase in murders in the Big Apple and around the country.

“Stop-and-frisk would be back in about five minutes, and we would empower the police, not undercut them,” said Christie, who is also a Republican presidential candidate. He referred to a policing strategy under former city Mayor Michael Bloomberg that critics blasted as a license for police to stop, question and frisk mostly black and Latino residents who they suspected had committed or could potentially commit a crime.

“If police officers step over the line, then they deserve to be taken care of and prosecuted,” Christie continued. “But this guy, this mayor presumes guilt on the part of the police officers before anything happens.”

Christie’s comments come as major cities around the country have seen a spike in violent crime that followed a year of protests against police brutality and law enforcement policies that disproportionately entangle blacks and Latinos. As conservative Republican politicians have blamed social justice activists for making the nation less safe and for putting officers in danger, Christie said most liberal major city leaders have been following President Barack Obama’s lead.

"This is the president's problem, because he has not allowed law and order to be the rule of the day in the United States,” Christie said Tuesday in a separate appearance on Fox News channel’s "Fox and Friends" talk show. “Lawlessness has been the rule of the day. And now the president says little or nothing about these police officers that are being hunted."