D.C. crime bill threatened by doubts from Democrats on way to Biden

The District of Columbia’s overhaul of the criminal code suffered a major blow Tuesday as Congress’ effort to rescind the local bill picked up key Democratic support in the Senate, clearing the way for potential passage by next week and forcing President Biden to decide whether to veto the legislation.

Sen. Joe Manchin III, West Virginia Democrat, said he wants to rescind a D.C. crime overhaul that would weaken penalties for some offenses, raising the likelihood that Congress will block the local legislation. The issue is delicate for Democrats, who are often accused of being soft on crime but tend to defend the District from Republican meddling in local affairs.

“I mean, I want to put people away. I don’t want to let them out,” Mr. Manchin told CNN. “I haven’t been briefed on [the D.C. bill], but what I know about it, I would vote to rescind it.”

The Constitution lets Congress have the final say over D.C. legislation during a review period.

An effort to block the D.C. crime overhaul passed the Republican-led House in February with support from more than 30 Democrats. Democrats have a 51-49 majority in the Senate and are contending with the absence of Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, who sought treatment for depression, so Mr. Manchin’s position makes passage a real possibility.

The resolution is considered privileged under fast-track rules, so it will get a vote on the Senate floor and requires only majority support for passage. The timing of the roll call is unclear, though legislative aides said it could occur by next week.

The situation will force Mr. Biden into an awkward spot. He must either wield his veto pen, letting Republicans cast him as unserious about crime in the capital, or sign the resolution and face the wrath of Democratic allies in the D.C. government, who would feel abandoned.

Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, the district’s nonvoting member of Congress, said passage looks likely, so she would like a clearer veto threat from Mr. Biden.

“The Manchin vote may be a nail in the coffin because we, the Democrats, control the Senate by only one vote,” Mrs. Norton, a Democrat, told The Washington Times. “[Mr. Biden] says he is opposed to rescinding the D.C. crime measure — that’s how he put it — but he has not said specifically he would veto it. I am concerned because I suspect there will be other Democrats who follow Manchin.”

Sen. Bill Hagerty, Tennessee Republican, said he sponsored the Senate resolution because people from across the country expect to feel safe when they visit the capital. He ticked off a list of daunting statistics about rising crime in the city, including an increase in carjackings for five straight years and 200 homicides in the past two years.

“Reducing penalties for violent crime in the midst of an ongoing crime wave obviously sends the wrong message. It will only serve to embolden criminals who are on a massive spree right here in Washington with carjackings, assaults and homicides,” he said in mid-February. “I can’t believe that President Biden wants to encourage more crime here in the District of Columbia. Combating crime should not be a Republican or a Democrat issue — it should be a commonsense issue, a bipartisan issue.”

The District’s crime overhaul is so contentious that it split local leaders. The D.C. Council overrode Mayor Muriel Bowser, who vetoed the bill over concerns that it would weaken too many penalties amid concerns about crime in the capital.

Republican lawmakers are dialing up the pressure on congressional Democrats, particularly red-state centrists who fear being tied to the defund-the-police movement.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, said Tuesday that crime in the capital is “literally out of control” and that national Democrats often are willing to flex federal powers on business regulations and pro-choice legislation.

“Washington Democrats have no qualms whatsoever about this city steamrolling 50 states and local communities. They vote for that outcome eight days a week,” Mr. McConnell said. “Now Washington Democrats pretend they’ve become small government federalists and they want Congress out of the picture. This is a desperate attempt to change the subject, and it could not be less persuasive.”

The White House released a statement in February saying it opposes the disapproval resolution, though it did not explicitly threaten a veto.

“While we work toward making Washington, D.C., the 51st state of our Union, Congress should respect the District of Columbia’s autonomy to govern its own local affairs,” the statement said.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre this week reiterated that position and outlined general steps Mr. Biden has taken to fight crime, without explicitly weighing in on a possible veto.

D.C. lawmakers react angrily to any attempt by Congress to guide city affairs.

The mayor and council members frequently lobby Capitol Hill Democrats for statehood, saying it would provide over 700,000 city residents with fair representation and give it powers that states with lower populations enjoy, such as the ability to call in the National Guard instead of relying on the president to do it.

Letters sent last week by Ms. Bowser, the D.C. Council and D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb called on the Senate to reject the disapproval resolution on the grounds that it was silencing the voice of the District’s residents.

“If any of the 50 states enacts a law that does not please Congress, that state is not stripped of its autonomy,” council member Vincent Gray, Ward 7 Democrat, told The Washington Times on Monday. “Our pursuit of statehood should not be linked to a local law that is out of fashion with congressional leadership.”

Mr. Gray introduced legislation last week that called for over 800 police officers to be added to the city’s Metropolitan Police Department, a move that was applauded by the mayor’s office.

Capitol Hill resolutions that disapprove of D.C. actions rarely succeed, making the latest push even more notable. However, Republicans have been able to block local efforts to fund abortions or set up legal marijuana sales by attaching the provisions to must-pass bills.

The effort to stop the D.C. crime bill is part of a double-barreled attempt by Republican leaders to stop liberal policies out of city hall.

The House also voted 260-162 to rescind a D.C. plan that would let noncitizens vote in local elections. The vote was bipartisan, with more than 40 Democrats joining Republicans.

The crime overhaul clashed with broad concerns about violent crime in the nation’s capital. Starting in 2025, the bill would reduce maximum penalties for certain gun crimes and things like robberies and carjackings. It would also let defendants seek jury trials for misdemeanors, which could overwhelm the courts.

Efforts to lessen penalties for certain gun crimes made Ms. Bowser particularly nervous. She said an update to the city’s outdated criminal code was overdue but she would have liked to fine-tune the council’s proposal.

At the same time, she said her differences with the council should be ironed out in-house without interference from Congress.

Ms. Bowser “has been clear she simply wants to make some adjustments in the bill,” Mrs. Norton said.

Mrs. Norton said she is hopeful the crime issue is a one-off and that Mr. Manchin will not try to rescind future D.C. laws.

“I expect Democrats in the Senate to hold fast generally with D.C. on its bills,” Mrs. Norton said.

• Matt Delaney contributed to this report.