BIDEN VETOES COMMONSENSE & BIPARTISAN CONGRESSIONAL RESOLUTION, ALLOWS DC’S ANTI-POLICING LAW TO STAY IN EFFECT

COLUMBUS, OH – Senator JD Vance (R-OH) issued the following statement reacting to President Biden’s veto of  H.J.Res.42, which would have nullified the DC Council’s “Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Amendment Act of 2022,” an anti-policing measure that endangers Americans in the District of Columbia:

“With today’s veto, President Biden rejected a bipartisan and commonsense effort to make our nation’s capital safer,” said Senator Vance. “The millions of Americans who visit Washington and the brave men and women of the DC Metropolitan Police Department deserve far better. It’s a shame they won’t get it from this administration.”

For Background:

  • H.J.Res.42 passed in the Senate by a vote of 56-43 with the support of 8 Democrats.
    • Senator Vance shepherded the resolution through the Senate. 
  • H.J.Res.42 passed in the House by a vote of 229-189 with the support of 14 Democrats.
  • According to the DC Police Union, “Since this Act was passed on an emergency basis in DC, the MPD has lost over 1,200 police officers while only replacing 700.”  MPD is likely at the lowest number of officers since the 1970s, at a time when violent crime is surging.
  • Violent crime is out of control in Washington:
    • In 2022, there were 203 homicides in DC, compared to 88 in 2012.
    • In the first four months of 2023, there have been 252 carjackings (74% involved firearms). Carjacking crimes have dramatically risen for five straight years in DC
    • The DC Metropolitan Police Department has acknowledged an “increase in street robberies across the city” and provided “tips” to avoid being a victim.  For example, they urge women “walking in public spaces” to “carry a small handbag or purse that you can grasp with a hand.”
    • Former DC Councilmember Jack Evans lamented earlier this year that DC is “on pace to have the most homicides since 1995” and “must address its crime issue.” “Now, homicides have surpassed 200 for the second year and our city appears lawless. People jump Metro turnstiles, shoplifting is epidemic and street crime and carjackings are routine.”
    • The Washington Post has also commented on the “alarming regularity of violence” in the city in a piece published last year.

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