WHO GETS WHAT: Obama plan has billions for cops

AP
Tuesday, Feb 3, 2009

President Barack Obama wants the government back in the policing business, big time.

Obama's huge stimulus plan includes about $4 billion to resurrect grants that put tens of thousands of police on the streets during the 1990s. The programs were all but eliminated during the Bush administration amid criticism that their results didn't justify the hefty price tags.

The grants are popular with Democrats, and restoring them was central to Obama's campaign plan to combat rising violence. By tacking the money onto the stimulus plan, Obama avoids having to defend the spending during the normal budget process.

The proposal allocates $3 billion for the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant, a program that has funded drug task forces, after-school programs, prisoner rehabilitation and other programs.

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