Thirty-three Democratic senators joined Republicans on Wednesday to block a controversial update to Washington, DC’s penal code that would reduce maximum sentences for violent crimes, including auto theft.
The upper house has advanced the resolution to reject bill 81-14 of the DC City Council, with all Republican senators in favor of the resolution sponsored by Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tennessee).
The measure now lands on the desk of President Biden, who announced last week that he would not veto it, outraging DC officials and some Democrats.
“Assaults and car thefts have become a daily routine. The homicides are piling up at a rate of four a week,” Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said during remarks on the Senate floor Wednesday.
“This is our capital. But local politicians have let their streets become a danger and a shame,” she added.
Biden, 80, informed Senate Democrats at a caucus luncheon last week that he would sign the legislation into law.
“I support DC Statehood. and self-government, but I am not in favor of some of the changes introduced by the Washington Council. despite the mayor’s objections, such as reducing penalties for vehicle theft,” Biden later wrote in a tweet announcing his intention not to veto the decision.
I count. “If the Senate votes to overturn what the DC Council did, I will sign it,” he added.
With Biden’s blessing, several Democrats in the Senate, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and lawmakers running for re-election in 2024 such as Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), supported the resolution.
Democratic Senate No. 2, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), voted “no” on the bill.
The House voted 250 to 173 last month to strike down the DC bill, with 31 Democrats joining all Republicans in voting yes. The ward bill would have reduced the maximum sentence for auto theft from 21 years (40 if armed with a weapon) to 18 years, or 24 if armed. The maximum sentence for armed robbery would be reduced from 45 years to 20 years.
The DC City Council attempted to withdraw the crime bill from Congress on Monday amid signs it would be overturned, but the Home Rule Act, which governs the district, does not allow the legislation to be withdrawn.
Congress has rarely used its oversight responsibilities over DC to push back legislation and has pushed down district laws only four times since the early 1970s, according to CNN.
“I don’t think Congress should interfere in our local government. They can because we live under the humiliation of limited self-government,” DC Mayor Muriel Bowser said in a tweet Wednesday.
“What we all need to be ready to do next is get to work on getting it right,” he added, despite vetoing the city council’s crime bill only to have his veto overturned before Congress passes and rejects it. the legislation.
