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Press Release Published: Mar 29, 2023

Wrap Up: Left-Wing Policies Pushed by D.C. Leaders Plague the Nation’s Capital

WASHINGTON – Today, the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability held a hearing titled “Overdue Oversight of the Capital City: Part 1.” At the hearing, members highlighted how Washington, D.C. officials have failed their responsibility to keep Americans safe, spur local economic development, adequately fund local law enforcement, and provide good educational opportunities. The D.C. Council’s left-wing, soft-on-crime policies have plagued the nation’s capital and Committee members pressed D.C. officials on what steps city leadership is taking to address rising crime, plummeting education levels, and a city budget that fails to prioritize law enforcement. Members observed that the Committee has a constitutional duty to oversee the District of Columbia and pledged to continue to hold local officials accountable to ensure a capital that is safe and prosperous for generations to come.   

Key Takeaways:

The Oversight Committee has a constitutional responsibility to conduct robust oversight of D.C. and its policies to ensure that Americans’ capital city is well-managed and safe for all Americans, including those who reside in the District.

The nation’s capital has deteriorated and become one of the least safe cities in America due to soft-on-crime policies and law enforcement budget cuts pushed by progressive D.C. Council members and city leadership. 

Greggory Pemberton, Chairman of the D.C. Police Union, testified that actions taken by the D.C. Council have resulted in a mass exodus of sworn D.C. law enforcement officers and a dramatic rise in violent crime city-wide.

Progressive D.C. leaders also implemented extreme COVID lockdowns that ignited a decline in the city’s quality of life, tremendous learning loss among school children, and a shortage of economic opportunities.  

Member Highlights:

Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) emphasized that violent criminals have been emboldened by soft-on-crime policies pushed by the D.C. Council. He highlighted the importance of supporting law enforcement in the nation’s capital and the need for District legislation that allows officers to fulfill their responsibility to protect Americans in D.C.

Chairman Comer: “Do the 330 million Americans who want to come to the nation’s capital have a right to not be mugged?”

Mr. Pemberton:“I would agree with that… this is everyone’s city.”

Chairman Comer: “Instead of reducing penalties for violent crime, what does the D.C. Council need to do to reduce crime in the nation’s capital?”

 Mr. Pemberton:“The first thing they need to do is to deal with police staffing… we do not have the proper number of police. We need to have the right number of police and have the backing of our local government…”

Chairman Comer also noted that the Committee has a constitutional responsibility to conduct oversight of the District of Columbia and that today’s hearing was a first step to ensure the city is a safe and prosperous city for all Americans. He announced that the Committee is inviting D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser to testify at a hearing scheduled for May 16, 2023.  

Chairman Comer: “D.C.’s officials have failed in their responsibility to keep safe its citizens and visitors… Therefore, our committee must fulfill its responsibility to conduct oversight of the District of Columbia. This Committee has and will continue to conduct oversight of the District of Columbia. We must for its residents, our constituents who visit from across the country, and those who work in this city.  They all deserve a safe and prosperous city.”

Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) stressed that the D.C. Council must strengthen local criminal penalties to keep violent offenders from returning to city streets.

Rep. Foxx: “According to D.C. police chief Robert Contee, on average any given homicide suspect in DC has already been arrested 11 times before he or she commits homicide. Why is D.C. allowing violent criminal to remain on the streets for so long?” 

Mr. Pemberton:“Most of the answer for that is that the criminal penalties that exist are incredibly weak. That’s due a lot to provisions passed by the D.C. Council… There are a number of provisions put in place that reduce sentencing guidelines.”

Rep. Foxx: “So to keep violent offenders from returning to the street, D.C. Council needs to tighten up on penalties. Is that correct?”

 Mr. Pemberton:“Yes.”

In addition, Rep. Foxx highlighted that draconian COVID-19 lockdowns pushed by city leadership resulted in school children suffering tremendous learning losses, below-average test scores, and high truancy rates that still linger in D.C. She concluded that D.C. officials need to take these issues seriously to ensure the city is safe and prosperous for all Americans, including those who live in the nation’s capital.            

Rep. Foxx: “We all know schools were shut down for long periods during the COVID pandemic which has created tremendous learning losses and drops in test scores… do you see a link between these school closures and the high truancy rates in D.C. that still lingers?”

Mr. Mendelson, Chairman of the D.C. Council:“There is some link…”

Rep. Gary Palmer (R-Ala.) noted that law enforcement recruitment and retention in the District of Columbia has become increasingly difficult because of progressive policies and police reforms pushed by the D.C. Council. 

Rep. Palmer: “This emergency police reform that you all pushed through… you’ve had 600 or so officers leave the police force. How has this impacted your ability to keep the city safe?” 

Mr. Pemberton: “That is correct. The chief of police testified last month that we were short over 500 police officers.”  

Rep. Palmer: “That’s a huge problem for recruiting and retaining officers, isn’t it?”

Mr. Pemberton: “It’s impossible. We are running a deficit every month. We are losing 15, 20, 25 officers per month. We just can’t keep up with the crime and demand…”  

Rep. William Timmons (R-S.C.) emphasized that there is immense bipartisan support in Congress, including support from the President of the United States, to hold the D.C. Council accountable for pushing left-wing policies that have failed to ensure the safety of Americans in the nation’s capital.

Rep. Timmons: “81 Senators disagree with the D.C. Council that things are getting better. The President of the United States disagrees with you that things are getting better. D.C. is not safe. You are up here telling us things are getting better… Your criminal code does not deter crime. Create a criminal code that does!”  

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) highlighted that the District of Columbia has stripped law enforcement funding through city budget restrictions. She stressed that the operation budget for D.C. police has been cut by millions of dollars and the budget cuts have ignited a crime crisis in the nation’s capital.       

Rep. Boebert: “You demand more help from police… yet, you strip law enforcement funding with budget squeezes. The statistics I have from the D.C. Fiscal Policy Institute state that from 2020 to current, MPD’s operating budget has been cut by more than 61.5 million dollars.”       

Rep. Russell Fry (R-S.C.) slammed the D.C. Council for embracing and pushing defund the police initiatives when statistics clearly show rising crime in Washington, D.C.       

Rep. Fry: “If D.C. were a state it would have far and away the highest per capita murder rate of any other state. From 2014 to 2020, D.C. ranked the highest with a homicide rate of 19.84 per 100,000 people. D.C. wants to be a state, they can’t even be a city. This is your premiere case when you defund the police, don’t prosecute criminals, and turn a blind eye to crime on the streets. This is our nation’s capital and quite frankly it is unacceptable.”     

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) highlighted that it would be a dereliction of duty for this Committee to not address rising crime in D.C. She noted that homicides are up 40 percent from last year, arson is up 400 percent, and car theft is up over 100 percent.          

Rep. Mace: “Homicides are up 40 percent from last year, arson is up 400 percent, and car theft is up over 100 percent. How many cars have been stolen so far this year in D.C.? It’s over 1,300 vehicles this year.”   

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) stressed that the D.C. Council has been more focused on renaming streets than confronting rising crime. She noted that there is a lack of police officers because law enforcement doesn’t feel supported by their city leaders.        

Rep. Greene: “This is 2023, we aren’t back in the 1900s. There is a crime crisis in Washington. The D.C. City Council is more interested in renaming streets than doing anything about crime… It is completely shocking to me.”
 

READ MORE:
Comer: This Committee Must Fulfill its Responsibility to Conduct Oversight of the District of Columbia

MEDIA COVERAGE:

DC Council chairman claims ‘there is no crime crisis’ in nation’s capital days after Senate staffer stabbed (Fox News)

Congress must fight D.C.’s ‘shocking’ crime trend, says House’s Comer (Washington Times)

CLICK HERE to watch the hearing.