Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise today to discuss the staggering crime problem plaguing the Nation's Capital and an outrageous attempt to unleash even more of it on residents and visitors alike. The DC City Council unanimously voted last year to substantially weaken its criminal code, including by eliminating life sentences and most mandatory minimums for any crime but first-degree murder. It is also lowering maximum penalties for some violent offenses like carjacking and robberies. These so-called reforms weren't just opposed by Republicans; they were even a bridge too far for the District's Democratic Mayor who vetoed the legislation, only to see that overruled by the City Council by a 12 to 1 margin. DC is experiencing a wave of the very crimes this proposal is going soft on. There have been 99 carjackings so far this year. Thirty-eight homicides have occurred in 2023, and 203 murders took place in the city last year--the second consecutive year its total surpassed 200. This preposterous answer to DC's public safety crisis was also rejected by the Washington Post editorial board, which said the city could become more dangerous while even further tying the hands of police and prosecutors if this effort were to succeed. Let's be clear, only in an overwhelmingly liberal city, with years of support from liberal lawmakers at the Federal level, would something like this ill-conceived crime spree incentive be possible. It is just bad policy.…”