Biden won’t veto GOP-led resolution overriding DC crime law, dealing blow to Democrats
Cami Mondeaux
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President Joe Biden won’t veto a Republican-led measure making its way through the Senate that would strike down a newly passed law overhauling D.C.’s century-old criminal code and reduce the penalties for some crimes, he told Senate Democrats on Thursday.
The decision not to veto the legislation deals a major blow to local lawmakers in Washington, D.C., who urged congressional Democrats and Biden to vote against the measure in order to preserve the city’s local autonomy. Biden told Senate Democrats of his decision during the party’s weekly luncheon as the upper chamber prepares to vote on the measure as soon as next week.
The news came as a surprise to some D.C. lawmakers, as Biden had previously expressed opposition to the Republican measure to override the city’s criminal code.
“This is news to me,” said D.C. House Del. Eleanor Norton. “I’m very disappointed in it.”
Other congressional Democrats expressed disappointment in Biden’s decision, calling it a loss for local government.
“We wouldn’t want them to do that in Baltimore, we wouldn’t want them to do that for any of our local jurisdictions. I think we respect local government,” said Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD). “We have the right to pass national laws, but we don’t override local decisions by councils. That’s something in which the people in the district share accountability to their council.”
The Senate GOP is hoping to force a vote next week on the updated code, which softens the punishment for homicide, robberies, and carjackings, opening Democrats up to attacks of being soft on crime should they choose to oppose the GOP’s repeal. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is unable to block the measure despite Democrats controlling the upper chamber, making the vote a rare opportunity for the GOP to put senators in battleground states on record on the issue.
The bill had earned support from Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV), all but guaranteeing its passage in the Senate, where Democrats have temporarily lost their outright majority with the absences of Sens. John Fetterman (D-PA) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA). Both are currently out of office due to health problems.
Biden’s decision not to block the measure paves the way for Congress to strike down the D.C. legislation, marking the first time in three decades that Congress has approved a resolution overturning district law. The last time was in 1991, when Congress voted to repeal a district law that sought to increase the maximum height of city buildings.
The Council of the District of Columbia overwhelmingly approved a bill last year that would implement a massive overhaul of the city’s criminal code, completing a project district lawmakers have been working on for 16 years. The rewritten legislation sought to clarify and lower penalties for some criminal offenses, with several lawmakers arguing severe punishments often do not deter crime.
Several congressional Republicans criticized the overhaul, claiming the law would make the district susceptible to violent crime by reducing penalties and “threatening the safety of both residents and visitors,” according to Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA), who introduced the House resolution that passed this month with the support of 31 Democrats.
The measure revived tensions between congressional Republicans and local lawmakers in the district, who denounced the legislation as an effort to use Washington, D.C., as a way to score political points ahead of a crucial election cycle.
“We have a very divisive national political discourse right now … where the Republicans and the Democrats on the national stage try to score points against one another,” D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb told the Washington Examiner earlier this week. “This is not about public safety in the District of Columbia. This is about using the District of Columbia as a pawn in a national political game.”
As the chief enforcer of district laws, Schwalb argued the House’s attempts to overturn the updated criminal code disrupt the city’s democratic process set out under the Home Rule Act.
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The Home Rule Act allows Washington, D.C., to operate as an independent city government despite not having statehood. The only caveat is that all laws are subject to congressional approval before being enacted — occasionally setting up showdowns between Congress and local lawmakers.
The Senate is poised to vote on the legislation as soon as next week, where it would then be sent to the president’s desk.
Samantha-Jo Roth contributed to this report.