MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough called out left-wing district attorneys on “Morning Joe” Tuesday for ignoring their constituents’ “quality of life issues.”
The host responded to the Tuesday special election seeking to recall San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin after the city witnessed a rise in homicides and robberies during the pandemic, the Washington Post reported. The city has additionally faced homeless and mental illness crises.
“This is a fascinating debate that we’re seeing play out in San Francisco. Of course, in New York City, New York Democrats elected a former NYPD cop [Eric Adams] and they elected him because of quality of life issues, they elected him because of crime,” Scarborough said. “Right now, his poll numbers are low and they’re low according to a recent poll because New Yorkers still don’t feel safe. You look at what’s happening in Philadelphia, you look at what’s happening all across this country over the past four years or so.”
“There’s been a wave of really progressive DAs,” he continued. “And what’s so fascinating is the debate inside the Democratic Party because some people will say that support progressive DA’s is ‘Oh, the crimes really aren’t that different.’ But on the ground, that’s not what New Yorkers, that’s not what people in Philadelphia [and] San Francisco are feeling. They feel like quality of life issues have been ignored by the city for the past couple of years.”
Guest co-host Willie Geist said officials in major cities across the country have been lenient on the issues related to homelessness, mental illness and crime, despite the people voicing deep concerns. He mentioned that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg initially announced criminals will receive no prison time unless they committed murder, violent felonies, sex offenses or white collar crimes. (RELATED: Father Of Slain 6-Year-Old Accuses DA Chesa Boudin Of Making ‘Justice System A Complete Joke’ In San Francisco)
After public backlash, Bragg scrapped two policies initially intending to prosecute armed commercial robberies with a gun or at knifepoint as a petty larceny or a misdemeanor if no one was harmed. In Los Angeles, District Attorney George Gascon reportedly refused to prosecute 12,000 cases brought forth in his first year as homicide and grand auto theft skyrocketed in his city.
“There is this push from social justice warrior DA’s and mayors like Mayor Adams, a former New York City police officer, trying to get back that quality of life to the city which is why, by-and-large, he was elected,” Geist said.
New York City witnessed a 20% increase in felony assault, a 39% rise in burglary and 43% jump in grand larceny in April in comparison to the previous year, according to the most recent New York Police Department data. The city saw a 38% decline in murder and 6% drop in rape.
San Francisco witnessed an 11% increase in homicide, 9% in rape and 20% in larceny theft in comparison to last year, according to San Francisco Police Department crime statistics. Robberies and burglaries dropped by 3% and 26% in the last year.