EXCLUSIVE — House Republicans’ campaign arm is calling attention to the rising crime levels in Washington, D.C., placing blame on years of failed Democratic policies and a progressive city council.
Washington, D.C., has faced an uphill battle over the last few years when it comes to crime, with the pandemic ushering in a wave of violence that continues to ravage the district’s once-flourishing downtown area. Recent sharp upticks in juvenile offenses and carjackings eventually forced Mayor Muriel Bowser and the D.C. Council to take another look at what the district can do to bring down criminal activity — but House Republicans say it is too little, too late.
A recent National Republican Congressional Committee memo obtained by the Washington Examiner claims that Washington, D.C., leaders are not only “ill-equipped” to handle the district’s increasing crime rates but also “directly contributed” to the problem.
“The failure of D.C. Democrats to keep crime under control has turned the city into a place hostile for residents, businesses, and tourists,” the memo stated. “House Democrats have directly contributed to the ruination of America’s capital city. If applied nationally, the policies supported by House Democrats would bring similar chaos to the whole country.”
In 2020, the D.C. Council approved a $15 million slash in police funding, following a growing trend across major cities in the nation after the Black Lives Matter movement that led to increased support for defunding the police. The council drew national attention a few years later when it overhauled its criminal code in 2022 to reduce offenses and penalties for homicide, robberies, and carjackings — the first time in 100 years that such changes had been made.
The criminal code, like all legislation coming out of the district, is subjected to federal oversight. In February and March, the House and Senate voted to overturn an overhaul of the criminal code, with 173 House Democrats voting in support of the Washington, D.C., law. It marked the first time in 30 years that Congress has repealed a local law passed by the D.C. Council. The council did pass a separate police reform bill that improved police accountability, banned chokeholds, and increased de-escalation training for law enforcement officers.
Though the criminal code overhaul was overruled by national lawmakers, Washington, D.C., is still seeing a rise in homicides, robberies, and carjackings. In 2023, motor vehicle theft increased 82%, robberies increased 67%, and homicides increased 35%. Within the first week of 2024, there have been more than 125 carjackings and 44 robberies.
A national Republican operative told the Washington Examiner that because the D.C. councilmembers trend “pretty far to the left” with virtually no institutional checks, the district serves as a “great example of what happens when you give Democrats completely unmitigated, total absolute control.”
“What’s happened in D.C. is ultimately what they would, if Democrats could, end up doing to most American cities in most American states,” the operative said.
Washington, D.C., is not receiving much support from its attorney general either. Juvenile crime has risen substantially in the district, and there is a lack of strong policies to detain or prosecute them. Washington, D.C., Attorney General Brian Schwalb has come under fire for declining to prosecute several juvenile cases, with former and current lawmakers and other critics arguing that this tactic could lead to many juveniles becoming repeat offenders or escalating to more violent crimes. He also pushed back against Bowser’s “tough on crime” act last summer.
Some of the D.C. councilmembers’ stances on crime are catching up to them. D.C. Councilman Charles Allen is now facing a recall effort led by Jennifer Squires, a former government worker, who said that the representative of Ward 6 should be more dedicated to curbing crime. The recall organizers need to collect signatures from at least 10% of registered voters in Ward 6 to move forward to a special election.
Ward 6 is the largest in the district, spanning the neighborhoods of Downtown, Penn Quarter, Gallery Place, and Chinatown — all areas with increased crime rates. Allen guided the crime laws that Congress blocked in March and also supported the controversial police reform bill in 2020 that was largely opposed by the D.C. Police Union.
In the wake of high-profile crimes, Bowser introduced new legislation in October to support “safe and effective policing” that has been criticized by conservatives for missing the mark. The new legislation would ban criminals from wearing masks, declare drug-free zones, and create new penalties for organized retail theft.
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The Democratic mayor has also faced recent criticism for her lack of appropriate crime responses after the Washington Wizards and Capitals announced that the organizations would move to Virginia due to the rising criminal activity in the Gallery Place neighborhood.
“Extreme Democrats’ radical policies turned our nation’s capital into a hot bed of soaring crime, causing residents to flee their neighborhoods for safer communities,” NRCC Rapid Response Director Ben Smith said in a statement to the Washington Examiner. “Now, extreme House Democrats want to export the same failed policies across the country. Only House Republicans are working to stop them.”
