Welcome to Cops & Congress by Annie Dance
Working to shine a light on important issues within all levels of government.
I’m Annie Dance, a deaf independent journalist, based in the Green Hill area of Rutherford County, North Carolina. Cops & Congress will shine a light on important issues in all levels of government, with a focus on the Lake Lure, NC area, and North Carolina’s 11th Congressional district.
Before I post my first long-form article soon about the Rutherford County Detention Center, I wanted to give a brief overview of what this online newsletter is about.
"Cops" refers to law enforcement officers, who work for police departments at the local, state, or federal level. "Congress" refers to the legislative branch of the United States government, which is responsible for creating and passing laws at the federal level. As time and funding permit, I will aim to cover state issues.
Question everything. Why are certain laws created? Who makes our laws? Who enforces them? What happens when there is limited or no oversight? How are taxpayers impacted?
There are a number of ways in which cops and Congress may interact or overlap. For example:
Congress has oversight authority over federal law enforcement agencies, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). This means that members of Congress have the power to investigate federal agencies and hold them accountable for their actions. It can get murky at times, such as a recent hearing with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
Congress also provides funding for law enforcement agencies at the federal, state, and local levels, mainly through the Department of Justice Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Program. This funding can be used to support a range of activities, from hiring new officers to purchasing equipment and technology.
Some members of Congress may have backgrounds in law enforcement, either as former police officers or prosecutors. These individuals may bring their expertise to discuss issues related to policing and criminal justice.
Congress is responsible for passing federal laws related to policing and criminal justice. In recent years, there has been a great deal of debate over issues such as police reform, racial bias in policing, and the use of force by law enforcement officers.
Overall, the relationship between cops and Congress is complex, with many different points of interaction and areas of overlap.
More to come. Please share, subscribe, and support my work.
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About Annie Dance
Annie Dance has been a journalist for over 20 years and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication with a concentration in Journalism from Manhattan College. She completed 42 credits for a Master of Arts in Communication degree at Fairfield University. She has been published in local, national, and international publications, including Hearst newspapers and websites, CTInsider.com, NewsTimes.com, and others. She is the Founding Editor of Western NC Deaf Community, a public Facebook group, where she covers deaf issues and leads discussions for ways deaf people can get better access to news and information in the 19 counties of western North Carolina. She was diagnosed with a profound hearing loss as a child and is an accessibility advocate, especially for the use of closed captioning.
Dance has experience in government affairs, media, and public policy. She is a registered unaffiliated voter and strives for fairness, truth and accuracy.
Dance has family roots in Raleigh. She served on local and state commissions in Connecticut for several years prior to moving to Rutherford County, North Carolina in 2020. She worked on local, state, and federal Republican candidates’ campaigns, including Connecticut’s Fifth Congressional District.
She aims to shine a light on important issues and hold officials accountable with Cops & Congress.