Democrats Defend D.C.’s Commonsense Police Accountability Reforms and Right to Self-Determination at Committee Hearing

Washington, D.C. (March 29, 2023)—Today, Rep. Jamie Raskin, Ranking Member of the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, led Democrats in defending D.C.'s right to self- governance and fought back against Republican attacks on commonsense police accountability and transparency reforms.

"The more than 700,000 U.S. citizens living in Washington, D.C. pay more taxes per capita than the residents of each of the 50 states. They have fought in the American Revolution and in every foreign war. They are draftable. They are subject to all the laws of the country. They have had no voting representation in the U.S. House or the U.S. Senate," said Ranking Member Raskin in his opening statement.

The hearing included testimony from Phil Mendelson, Chair, Council of the District of Columbia; Charles Allen, Councilmember, Council of the District of Columbia; Glenn Lee, Chief Financial Officer, District of Columbia; and Greggory Pemberton, Chair, D.C. Police Union.

Committee Democrats defended D.C.'s right to political self-determination, called for statehood, and pushed back against Republicans' specious anti-statehood arguments.

• In response to a question from Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, Council Chairman Mendelson confirmed that 86 percent of the population of Washington D.C. voted in favor of statehood during a 2016 referendum. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton added: "The people of the District of Columbia want statehood. They want voting representation in Congress. They want to govern themselves like everyone else in this country. Congress has the authority to admit the state of Washington Douglas Commonwealth. It is time to pass the D.C. statehood bill."

• Rep. Robert Garcia criticized Republicans for trying to control D.C. residents: "If my Republican colleagues are so interested in trying to bring up data about Washington, D.C. then we should do the same and focus, and have hearings, on states. We should be having hearings on why Texas has more uninsured people than any other state in the United States. We should be talking about why Louisiana and Mississippi have some of the lowest life expectancy of any other state." He added, "I have no interest in telling Mississippi or Louisiana or Texas how to run their states and my colleagues should not be" involved in how a city runs its operations."

• Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton stated: "In opposing D.C. statehood in recent years Republicans have made a variety of dubious arguments. For example, Republicans have fretted about D.C.'s lack of car dealerships, they worried that D.C. does not have workers in the mining and logging industry…Some Republicans even admitted the quiet part out loud. They opposed statehood because they presumed D.C. would elect two Democratic Senators. There is nothing new about such unprincipled partisanship, racism, regionalism, slavery, and religion have all played roles in Congressional debates over the admission of new states, eventually all such opposition was overcome."

Committee Democrats criticized Republicans for attempting to overturn the will of D.C. residents.

• Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost called out Republicans for their hypocrisy in overreaching into local affairs, stating, "I'm wondering what happened to the Republican Party. I thought this was the party of small government, yet here they are." He continued, "When it comes to rolling back local policies that were democratically decided, I just haven't heard a single rationale that I'm sympathetic to."

• In response to a question from Rep. Shontel Brown, regarding whether, in the last five years, House or Senate Republicans have asked to testify before the D.C. Council to express views on pending legislation, Chairman Mendelson confirmed they had not, concluding: "It is clear, Republican interference in D.C. affairs is a choice. It is not about constitutional duty or serving the interest of D.C. residents. Instead it's about using D.C. to score political points. I urge my colleagues to end this charade. Let's let D.C. residents govern themselves."

• Rep. Becca Balint criticized Republicans for encroaching on the rights of D.C. residents: "Our nation was born out of a revolution over taxation without representation and yet we're here in this Committee contemplating overriding, yet again, a piece of legislation passed by the duly elected members of the D.C. Council. The people of D.C. deserve better, they are Americans. They deserve statehood. They deserve to have their voices heard."

Committee Democrats underscored the importance of D.C.'s police accountability and transparency reforms.

• Councilmember Allen noted that the reforms were designed to increase transparency, enhance public safety, and promote community trust in law enforcement: "Every Chief that I can recall has also asked for the ability to have powers to be able to hold officers who break that trust, who break that faith who create misconduct, to be able to have the ability to discipline, and that's what this legislation does."

• Rep. Greg Casar panned Republicans' effort to roll back the reforms: "There is a strategy from the Republican Majority to try to mischaracterize civil rights policy, overwhelmingly pushed by Democrats, as bad for public safety to try to create this impossible choice between civil rights and public safety. I humbly submit that Americans deserve both, civil rights and public safety."

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