Washington, D.C., Council Chair Phil Mendelson withdrew the much-maligned revised crime bill March 6, ahead of a vote by the U.S. Senate.
Mendelson announced his intention to withdraw the Revised Criminal Code Act (RCCA) Monday following a surprise flip from President Joe Biden, who indicated March 2 that he would support the Senate’s decision to overturn the bill.
“I think our challenge here is that the message got out of our control and the messaging had [been] picked up by Republicans who wanted to make a campaign out of it for next year against the Democrats,” Mendelson told Fox News 5.
Washington, D.C., Council Chairman Phil Mendelson announced Monday that he has withdrawn a controversial criminal code bill from the Senate to forestall a vote against it. https://t.co/fgSXFzZAZU
— FOX 5 DC (@fox5dc) March 6, 2023
The bill has been widely panned by Democrats and Republicans alike as “sending the wrong message” as crime rates in the nation’s capital continue to rise. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser vetoed the bill in January, expressing concerns that the bill was not only a “complete overhaul” of the criminal code in the District, but that it would also “weaken penalties” for crime. The D.C. Council later overturned Bowser’s veto.
In an effort to keep the U.S. Congress from “meddling” in D.C. affairs, Bowser proposed an amendment to the bill in February that would restore penalties on crimes “the public has expressed significant concerns about in recent months.”
Despite her proposed amendments, the House of Representatives voted to overturn the crime bill Feb. 9, exercising its constitutional right to review all D.C. legislation before it can become law. Under the District Clause of the Constitution (Article 1, Section 8, Clause 17) Congress can change or even overturn D.C. legislation and can impose new laws on the district.
Biden seemed to support Bowser’s stance initially, arguing, “Congress should respect the District of Columbia’s autonomy to govern its own local affairs” in a statement Feb. 6. When his stance changed nearly a month later, some Democrats in Congress who support home rule for D.C. were frustrated and upset, while others said they understood and supported the president’s decision.
“Calling it a home rule thing is not so accurate. This is about getting it right when we all realize there are some very serious crime issues,” Democratic New Mexico Sen. Martin Heinrich told CNN. (RELATED: Joe Manchin Will Vote To Overturn Controversial DC Crime Law)
“It’s quite clear at this point that both houses would vote against the legislation. So in effect, we’re accomplishing what they want – which is that the Bill cannot become law,” Mendelson told Fox 5.
Mendelson also spoke about whether Mayor Bowser’s lack of support for the bill initially impacted how Congress perceived the legislation. “I don’t think I want to go there,” he told the outlet. “The message today is that the bill has been pulled back from the Congress. That’s the message today and I don’t know that there’s anything, any purpose gained by talking about other folks did or didn’t do or should or shouldn’t have done.”