Here, for example, if the overwhelming scientific evidence shows that crime and safety are much more connected to root causes like inequality, poverty, housing, healthcare, education, addiction, loneliness and human connection, toxic masculinity, environmental toxins, and deeper cultural trends, then there should be a high bar for lying to people that tweaks in police numbers and policies or the length of prison sentences are major factors in how safe they are. And if the evidence shows that more investment in the repressive surveillance and punishment bureaucracies actually hinders the push for progressive changes in those other areas, it would take a lot to justify telling the public that these repressive investments are costless.

Tl;dr - since it is not true that more cops make us safer, why do most people--across the entire ideological spectrum--keep advocating for more police?