Press Release

Pete Stauber has tweeted support for Bob Kroll, who swore to ‘fight for jobs’ of officers who killed George Floyd

 

Representative Pete Stauber, who House Republicans just tapped to lead their police reform efforts, has a history of supporting Bob Kroll, the head of the Minneapolis Police Union, whose career is full of racist, inflammatory, and outright violent behavior.

In late 2019, Stauber tweeted a photo of himself and Kroll and declared that he’s “proud to stand by” the police union head, whose controversial career has included:

• Pledging to fight for the jobs of the officers who killed George Floyd and attacking Floyd’s character
• Calling Black Lives Matter a “terrorist organization”
• Challenging a Minneapolis resident to a fight on social media and calling him a “cowardly cunt”
• Calling Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison a “terrorist”
• Calling the police on a Washington Post reporter because Kroll “doesn’t want any press”
• A lengthy history of excessive force complaints, including
  • Beating a man whose backpack bumped Kroll’s car
  • “Beating, choking, and kicking” a biracial 15-year-old boy while hurling slurs at him
• Fighting to continue holding “killology” trainings that encourage officers to use lethal force

Ken Martin, Chairman of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, issued the following statement:

“If House Republicans were remotely serious about police reform, they wouldn’t have put an ally of Bob Kroll in charge of it. It is disgraceful that Representative Stauber would stand by a man like Kroll, whose career has been defined by senseless violence, overt racism, and a defense of the aspects of policing most in need of reform.

“If Representative Stauber thinks Bob Kroll’s violent and racist career is worthy of support, I have no hope whatsoever for any reform package that Stauber and House Republicans will be putting forward.”