61 Comments
May 20·edited May 20

"Donalds "was arrested for possession of marijuana with intent to distribute when he was 18 and had just moved to Florida for college." He avoided serious consequences "thanks to a pretrial diversion program." Donalds then "caught a bribery charge three years later." But he was able to get "both records expunged." The flexible sentencing afforded to Donalds as a young adult allowed him to pursue a career and eventually become a Congressman."

The republican hypocrisy knows no bounds. You can trust those like Byron Donalds to "pull the ladder up behind them." It's what they do best. Use their beliefs to limit the choices other people have!

Expand full comment

Exactly. Their abortion bans harm women who want to have children, their rejection of Obamacare and common-sense gun laws and gutting of public education hurt their own constituents, and it seems to make no difference to their voters. (Recommended reading: _Dying of Whiteness_ by Dr. Jonathan Metzl. Taken along with Heather McGhee's _The Sum of Us_, it shows just how much racist policies hurt everyone.)

Expand full comment
founding

The guilt over their own criminal behavior--even simply lying about whether the election for President was stolen from Trump--causes all the aforementioned Republicans to project their guilt onto the world around them.

Since cable news is not watched by young voters, can we find people who can put this story on TikTok? Especially Byron Donalds' history and how he has turned himself inside out to punish any young guy who would benefit from the humane treatment Donalds received! Each one of these characters, (thinking of Roger Marshall R of Kansas) deserve to lose their power.

What a relief that our President Biden is aware of exactly what Judd's article illustrates!

Expand full comment

This sounds like what the GOP in Mississippi to trying to do in Jackson. Take an area dominated by African Americans who tend to vote Dem, and impose their own set of laws (and judges) on the area. Even the justification sounds similar. DC needs statehood now, not this patronizing b.s.

Expand full comment

Republicans misrepresenting crime stats to push a political narrative? Well, I never!

Expand full comment

Well perhaps you should get out of your silo silo SILO!

/s

Expand full comment

I live in the Virginia suburbs not far from DC and I regret mostly working at home rather than going into the city these days because DC is such a pleasant and enjoyable place. I pop in some weekends and besides the usual problems most cities struggle with, like traffic and rodents, it is safe and full of life. Republicans live in a fantasy world of their own making and shame on every Democrat stupid or cynical enough to vote for this bill.

Expand full comment

The tortured dystopia that our Republican friends are living in is a delusion which only exists in their own psyches. It is constantly fed and reinforced by "conservative" (Saudi financed weasel news and/or Russian bot accomplished) media and their own psychological dysfunctions. The "wool" has now been pulled down over their eyes so completely that no glimpse of reality is allowed to enter. Our addiction to "free speech, is the means by which America's most subtle and dangerous enemies are slowly destroying us. Trump and the Republican Party are the unwitting but completely willing vehicles by which that destruction is being accomplished. If we allow it, the destruction they would accomplish in DC will spread nationwide. It will be the end of America as we know it since the Republican's dysfunctions now guarantee that they will make worse every problem they think they see. They can do nothing else because this is what their delusions require of them.

Expand full comment
May 22·edited May 22

All you have to do is show a magat some money and like any other common crackhead, they'll sell whatever they own of value in the long-term, to get "some (fill in the blank)" right now in the shortest of short-terms!

They'll sell Ma to one party and the gold teeth out of her mouth to another, her hide to another and her SACRED (only to the highest bidder) bones to someone else.

Ask me how I know this.

Expand full comment

When I lived in DC in the sixties, I lived and worked in several "dangerous" neighborhoods, and for a while had a reverse commute to Arlington that brought me home well after midnight. The only crime I experienced was a man exposing himself near DuPont Circle. The real crime, it seems to me, is that DC residents don't have a voting representative in Congress, something that would be a scandal in any other part of the country.

Expand full comment

The table you shared comparing 2023 to 2024 is based on YTD both years or the totals of 2023 vs YTD in 2024? In the latter case, DC is on track to have higher crime this year over last.

Statistics are one thing, but brazen daylight carjackings and murders all over town counts more than aggregate data in people’s hearts and minds.

This thievery of DC governance keeps rearing its head by Republicans periodically but their proposal is not the answer. DC voters need - and are - to be the ones responding.

Biden’s comments are Spot on.

Expand full comment

It is YTD (May 20) data for both years- there's a link to the data in Judd's post. While the "significant" increase is noted in the post, I was shocked to see it was a 39% increase from '22 to '23. Even if 2024 maintains the reduction all year, there's still work to be done.

None of this changes the point of the post- that Republicans are choosing to react NOW, vs 2-3 years ago and that many of them have far more crime-ridden cities in their home states.

Expand full comment

Crime in the (Democrat) cities is a recurring Republican theme, and that goes especially for (predominately black) DC. Thanks, Judd, for the dose of reality.

Expand full comment

I have to wonder if hidden in this gem of bad legislation there is something that would prevent DC police from answering a call should another Jan. 6 type event by a Republican Congress. Even by inference? The House has many members that are election deniers and participants in the lead up to Jan 6 2021.

Or may be applied to mass protest of the populace in DC as a response to the '24 election

I smell a huge minority rule rat in the wind.

Motive is everything here.

It's hard to trust Republicans. Just sayin'

Expand full comment

You know you gave me a thought cathy and I have to say in reply to:

"It's hard to trust Republicans. Just sayin'"

No it ain't. Not if you just don't trust them a'tall!

Expand full comment

Washington, D.C. is 60% non-white and this is another episode from GOP Studios of the hit show “Black & Brown People Behaving Badly!” That’s part one of the story. Then there’s part two…Byron Donalds is Trump’s pick to replace DeSantis as Florida governor, so that explains his “tough on crime” agenda. William Timmons is just another election denier groveling at the feet of the god king. Hey, William, maybe you worrying less about Hunter Biden’s laptop and worry more about skyrocketing auto and homeowners insurance in your home state of South Carolina. Let’s have a hearing about that, whattaya say? This is all about theatrics and lacks any viable substance. I thought about using the term “saber rattling,” but gawd knows what a bloody mess it would be if republicans actually attempted to rattle a saber!

Expand full comment

Hear hear Randy!

Kick him in the knee caps and light his sack on fire too. These guys need to ride the rail to oblivion! Or perhaps they would prefer Siberia, dah?

Expand full comment

Oblivion seems to be an appropriate destination, but Siberia could provide much needed cooling for his blistered sack and sore knee caps! 😁

Expand full comment

Hahahahahahaha!

We are on a ROLL sir! Woo Charlie that was fun.

Thank you Randy

Expand full comment

Congress truly has nothing else to do? Go after DC & attend & defend a hopefully soon to be a convicted felon..... there is no low too low for maga

Expand full comment

Thank you for telling everyone that they are being lied to by the right wing of the GOP.

Expand full comment

More blatant hypocrisy from the right. Of course, Byron Donalds wants harsher penalties for someone who was in his exact situation. Who could possibly vote for this nonsense? Then if his law is passed, it should go into effect retroactively, he should be arrested and charged for his 'expunged' crime and he goes to jail for it. Then they have to have a recall election for his post.

Expand full comment

In my opinion, what is out of control are the republicans, who, like normal are trying to control everything they can to their own means. Power is the gold they seek, power and control over other people, domination over other humans. I think DC should be it's own state. But what do I know, I'm just a liberal, you know, free speech, human rights, the usual stuff.

Expand full comment

It should be noted that it's relevant for you to point out that crime statistics are notoriously unreliable. Popular Information's own reporting noted this in the "inventory Shrink" reporting earlier this year.

The fact that individuals benefitting from consideration given to their own misdeeds, turn around and then end those considerations is droll. Akin to Justice Thomas' stance to do away with Afirmative Action in the College Admissions process.

It would be so nice if people who behaved like that actual admited that there is merit to those programs to wit- their own advantage.

Expand full comment

Never! That would be like gasp, "telling the truth!"

To the truth, highly allergic are they being.

Expand full comment

Please share with us the Democrats that supported this awful bill. They need to hear loud and clear from their communities that this bill would be a terrible mistake.

Expand full comment
founding

These are the 18 Ds who voted yes for one of the most significant intrusions in DC's Home Rule in years. If one of them is yours, please tell them you are disappointed!! Thanks for a disenfranchised DC resident.

Caraveo (CO)

Correa (CA)

Craig (MN)

Cuellar (TX)

Davis (NC)

Gallego (AZ)

Golden (ME)

Gonzales, Vicente (TX)

Harder (CA)

Kaptur (OH)

Moskowitz (FL)

Norcross (NJ)

Panetta (CA)

Peltola (AK)

Perez (WA)

Ryan (NY)

Schrier (WA)

Sorensen (IL)

Expand full comment

Distract, alienate and project…republican strategy in a nutshell. My daughter and her Catholic school class will enjoy a wonderful field trip into DC today. Republicans can schuck it! Thank you DC and Judd.

Expand full comment