WASHINGTON — Wounded by the partisan gridlock that foiled efforts to improve American policing amid a wave of protests last summer, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott wondered whether tackling an issue that has bedeviled legislators for decades was even possible.
So when U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., and U.S. Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., approached Scott earlier this year about working together to reach a compromise that both parties could agree to, the South Carolina Republican thought back to how frustrating the last attempt had been.
“But the conclusion of that thought was: Let’s get back to work,” Scott told The Post and Courier in an interview at his Capitol Hill office.
“I’m not going to hold the American people hostage for a solution that’s now more probable because (Democrats) have the White House… I’m happy to reengage on day one. I’ve said anytime, anywhere, anyone who wants to negotiate on really important issues, count me in. This is a really important issue.”
Months after those talks began, the negotiators are now entering crunch time.
