Val Demings Eviscerates Marco Rubio For Claiming She Has a ‘Sudden Interest’ in Fighting Crime: ’27 Years of Putting on a Bulletproof Vest’

Mandel Ngan-Pool/Getty Images

Rep. Val Demings (D-FL) hit back at Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) on Wednesday after the Florida Republican accused the former police chief of having a “sudden interest” in fighting crime, posting a sharply worded tweet that highlighted her prior career in law enforcement.

Demings replied to the statement on Twitter, saying:

27 years of putting on a bulletproof vest to go to work as a law enforcement officer is not a “sudden interest” in combating violent crime. I reduced violent crime by 40% as Orlando’s Chief of Police while Marco Rubio was home asleep in his bed.

27 years of putting on a bulletproof vest to go to work as a law enforcement officer is not a “sudden interest” in combating violent crime. I reduced violent crime by 40% as Orlando’s Chief of Police while Marco Rubio was home asleep in his bed. https://t.co/H48ovDgvMD

— Val Demings (@valdemings) February 9, 2022

Demings was responding to a tweet from a Rubio campaign post which read, “Ever since arriving in Washington, Val Demings has made it harder for police to do their jobs while enabling violent criminals…”

“Today’s demonstration is solely motivated by her run for Senate, and is too little, too late for the many Americans affected by the uptick in violent crime,” Rubio said, referring to a press conference Demings held on Wednesday to address to rising crime.

“This is political opportunism at its worst,” Rubio concluded.

“Today’s demonstration is solely motivated by her run for Senate, and is too little, too late for the many Americans affected by the uptick in violent crime.

“This is political opportunism at its worst.” — @marcorubio

— Team Marco (@TeamMarco) February 9, 2022

Demings is running in the August Democratic primary to challenge Rubio for his Senate seat in November.

Demings has represented Florida’s 10th congressional district since 2017 and served as chief of the Orlando Police Department from 2007 to 2011. Demings spent 27 years with the Orlando Police Department, starting off as a beat cop on patrol.

She has also been a vocal critic of the “defund the police” movement in the Democratic Party. She distanced herself from Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO) this week, who defended the slogan, telling reporters:

Good legislators talk to communities about things that matter to them. When we talk to communities, particularly those in some of the most high crime areas, they will say, “No, we don’t want to defund the police. We want to fund the police. We don’t want to see less police. We want to see more police.” Because they believe if we cut police resources, then they become even more vulnerable.