U.S. Representative Gary Palmer (R-Hoover) on Thursday expressed approval of a recent memorandum by President Donald Trump that instructs Attorney General Bill Barr to look into pulling funding from local governments that allow “anarchist jurisdictions.”

“My Administration will not allow Federal tax dollars to fund cities that allow themselves to deteriorate into lawless zones,” reads the official memorandum bearing Trump’s signature.

“I applaud President Donald Trump for standing up for law and order,” Palmer tweeted approvingly with a link to the document.

The move by the president, which instructs the federal government to look into the possibility but does not yet order any action taken, comes during a high profile election year where street violence and looting have become increasingly high profile campaign issues.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) recently targeted U.S. Senator Doug Jones (D-AL) with an ad on the topic.

The president cites cities like Seattle, Portland and New York as localities not properly carrying out their responsibilities to protect life and property.

The question of whether the Trump administration could legally carry out an order to defund cities without an act of congress is a matter of some legal debate. Various legal minds, especially those whose politics align with the Democratic Party, have expressed that such an order would be subjected to voluminous lawsuits claiming unconstitutionality.

Palmer was undeterred by complaints in the other party.

“Our tax dollars shouldn’t be funding cities whose mayors and governors don’t take the protection of law-abiding citizens seriously. I hope this motivates them to step up,” he concluded.

Henry Thornton is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can contact him by email: henry@new-yhn.local or on Twitter @HenryThornton95