(NewsNation) — A once idyllic college town in Burlington, Vermont, has seen things turn for the worse after the city defunded its police back in 2020.

Burlington's police department is down 30-plus officers despite originally being a 90-officer force. Five years ago, the city decided to focus more on social workers instead of police. However, the city is trying to reverse course and hire back officers.

The officers, though, are refusing to come back. One business owner, Mark Bouchette, says that the problem isn't a Democrat-Republican issue and more potentially a Democratic-progressive matter.

"I’m hard-pressed to impugn their motives," said Bouchette. "I think there is a strain of folks who truly believe in a perfect world, police are not necessary. And maybe in a perfect world, they'r

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