Marc Benioff, the CEO of Salesforce, San Francisco’s largest employer and anchor tenant in the city’s tallest skyscraper, urged progressive leaders in City Hall on Sunday night to reverse course on defunding the police. He advocates to “refund” the police force after defunding policies sparked a metro area-wide surge in violent crime. This call from Benioff, alongside others, suggests a growing separation from previously ‘woke’ policies. However, these calls to reverse disastrous progressive policies could be too late.
On Sunday evening, Benioff posted on X, “San Francisco must REFUND the Police not continue to DEFUND the Police. Our SFPD and Sheriffs are the key to a safe and clean San Francisco every day. SFPD must be returned to >2000 officers within 18 months from <1400 where it has been allowed to fall, and the police force must be fully empowered to enforce ALL laws.”
He continued, “Compensate ALL city employees to recruit the best officers in the country. Reward and recognize them for hiring the absolute best now. San Francisco Police Academy must be expanded for hiring surge. All laws must be fully enforced. Police must be fully funded. The DA’s office must prosecute to the fullest level of the law. Return Safety to retail business and residential properties NOW. DISTRICT BY DISTRICT – Police officers need to be enabled to protect assigned districts and rewarded & measured for their effectiveness. Metrics for effectiveness need to be clearly defined and transparent. Let’s institute a Neighborhood Policing model in San Francisco, safety District by District. We can and must do more now with our police force.”
And, of course, Elon Musk, whose X headquarters is based in the crime-ridden metro area, responded to Benioff’s post: “We must also grant law enforcement officers the respect and honor that they deserve. Every profession has flawed individuals, but it was deeply wrong to condemn all police officers, after they risked their lives to keep us safe, for the sins of the few.”
Musk has warned San Francisco’s downtown feels “post-apocalyptic” …
The backfiring of policies recently forced Democrat Mayor London Breed to reverse course on her defunding the police initiatives. She has requested more funding for police, a move to attract businesses back to the downtown area.
Benioff has previously warned about the metro area’s collapsing commercial real estate market, warning that the downtown area is “never going back to the way it was” in pre-Covid times.
No more kneeling for the mayor?
… and across the nation, who could’ve seen this coming?
Blue cities face severe police shortages as violent crime explodes.
X users responded to Benioff’s post:
This post was originally published at Zero Hedge