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New Executive Orders Make Law And Order A Key Priority

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WASHINGTON (AP) -- As it swore in Jeff Sessions as the nation's attorney general, the Trump administration signaled some of its priorities for a revamped Justice Department.

President Donald Trump issued a trio of executive orders Thursday aimed at reducing crime and drug trafficking, and protecting police officers.

One order directs the Justice Department to define new federal crimes, and increase penalties for existing ones, to further protect local and federal officers from acts of violence. Another order calls for the creation of a task force to reduce violent crime, and a third is aimed at dismantling international drug cartels.

The directives suggest that the White House wants to prioritize law and order and align itself closely with local law enforcement.
But some say the orders purport to solve problems that don't exist.

(© Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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