A Lone Star showdown is brewing in Austin, Texas. Last month, the City Council voted to slash one-third of its policing budget — this despite the fact that the city boasts the nation’s largest year-over-year increase in homicides since 2019. The plan will divest $10.7 million from training programs, cancel its most diverse cadet class in history, and shift nearly $22 million to community reinvestment.

In response, Gov. Greg Abbott has threatened to freeze property tax hikes and put the police department under state control. This battle is emblematic of those being waged across the country. A zeitgeist of police reform has gripped the country. Peaceful protests advocating for change are co-opted by violent political extremism. Riots rage. Businesses burn. Governments are struggling to respond coherently.