Not every Democrat is fighting Trump's D.C. police takeover
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President Trump speaks to reporters in the Oval Office on Aug. 14. Photo: Will Oliver/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Some House Democrats are striking a much more careful tone on President Trump's D.C. crime crackdown than their party's leadership.
Why it matters: Democrats' centrist wing has spent years rebutting claims by Republicans that the party is universally anti-law enforcement — and it's not about to let down its guard now.
- That could present complications for Democratic leadership if a measure to extend — or end — Trump's D.C. "crime emergency" comes up for a vote.
- It also complicates a message that has been largely centered on accusing Trump of overreacting to a nonexistent crime problem.
What they're saying: "I'm a believer in local control, which is why I've supported DC statehood. But under current law, the president does have authority to nationalize DC's local police under certain conditions," Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) said in a statement.
- He added, "If there is a disagreement between the president and leaders in DC about whether those conditions have been met, it will be up to the courts to decide."
- Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) told Axios in a statement: "I support efforts to reduce crime in Washington, D.C., and I stand with the members of law enforcement who are working to keep our communities safe."
- Cuellar said those efforts should be "closely coordinated with city officials, local police departments and federal law enforcement agencies" to avoid "unnecessary overlap."
State of play: Trump announced Wednesday that he is federalizing the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department and deploying the D.C. National Guard to crack down on what he described as rampant crime in the city.
- Democrats have pushed back by noting that D.C. crime has fallen the last two years to a 30-year low, but Republicans have argued that the numbers are still far too high.
- A group of Democrats, led by House Judiciary Committee ranking member Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), introduced a joint resolution on Friday to end the "crime emergency" upon which Trump's crackdown is based.
Zoom in: Other Democratic centrists are trying to reorient the issue through an anti-Trump lens, with some noting Republicans shortchanged the city by $1 billion in a government funding bill this year.
- "City leaders should be all in on fighting crime. Trump should give them their money back to hire more cops," said Greg Landsman (D-Ohio).
- "Why did he steal $1 billion from the city when they need it for public safety and roads? So fight crime and his chaos. If it doesn't make the city safer, fight back. Safety first."
- Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), another swing-district member, said she opposes the National Guard deployment and warned that their roundup of homeless people in D.C. may overcrowd local hospitals.
The other side: "Trusting a Democrat to handle crime is like asking the fox to guard the henhouse," said Mike Marinella, a spokesperson for the National Republican Congressional Committee, in a statement to Axios.
- "Voters know they're less safe in Democrat-run cities, and no amount of spin can cover up their long record of backing Defund the Police, Abolish ICE, and every other pro-criminal policy in the book."
