'The mere fact that you have the equipment doesn’t mean that you have to use it,' Reid says. Reid backs military gear to police

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he supports keeping the flow of military surplus equipment to local police departments — though he backs increasing oversight on how it is used.

The protests in Ferguson, Missouri, have drawn a police response that includes law enforcement officials armed with weaponry that several lawmakers have criticized as overmilitarized in appearance, with camouflage-clad officers wielding heavy weapons and armored vehicles. Many local police departments are able to acquire military-grade arms and equipment through the Defense Department’s “1033” program, established by Congress in the ’90s, which allows that equipment to trickle to the police


A bipartisan coalition of senators is angling to examine these programs and whether it’s appropriate for assault rifles and grenade launchers to flow to local law enforcement. But in an interview with “Nevada Newsmakers,” Reid seemed to short-circuit hopes for any sea change in the program.

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“The issue is this: Whether we should we allow surplus equipment the military has to go to police departments. I say yes. We have police departments all over the country, including those in Nevada, who are desperate for more resources. And the mere fact that you have the equipment doesn’t mean that you have to use it,” Reid said in a joint interview with Nevada GOP Sen. Dean Heller that was taped on Monday night.

Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has said that the Senate will examine the 1033 program as part of this year’s pending defense authorization bill, and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said last week that the United States “must demilitarize the police.” Previous congressional efforts, including one in the House this year, have fallen short.

Heller said he’s inclined to support Paul’s position.

“I think we, in the Senate, ought to take a look at that and look at some of the decisions we’ve made in the past and determine whether or not they’re good for the citizenry,” Heller said.

( WATCH: Arrests on 10th day of Ferguson)

But Reid said the focus of scrutiny should fall on how such equipment is used — not the police’s ability to acquire it.

“It’s not a question of the equipment, it’s what they do with it. And it’s obvious that there needs to be more oversight. Once the equipment is given to somebody, they need to have training procedures to allow them to use it properly,” Reid said.