The White House was pressed Thursday by several reporters after President Joe Biden said he'd sign a law overriding the new Washington D.C. crime bill.
Biden — while stressing that he still supports D.C. statehood — nonetheless promised he'd sign a law overriding a crime bill passed unanimously by the city council if it reaches his desk.
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I support D.C. Statehood and home-rule – but I don’t support some of the changes D.C. Council put forward over the Mayor’s objections – such as lowering penalties for carjackings.
— President Biden (@POTUS) March 2, 2023
If the Senate votes to overturn what D.C. Council did – I’ll sign it.
Reporters questioned press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on the apparent contradiction — if D.C. should be a state, why does the president think he has the authority to override its city council?
“This is different,” Jean-Pierre said. “The D.C. council put changes forward over the mayor’s objections, and the president doesn’t support changes like lowering penalties for carjackings... But again, it doesn't change the administration strongly supporting HR 51, which would have made DC the 51st state."
Biden's decision not to veto the legislation deals a major blow to local lawmakers in Washington, D.C., who urged congressional Democrats and Biden to vote against the measure in order to preserve the city's local autonomy. Biden told Senate Democrats of his decision during the party's weekly luncheon as the upper chamber prepares to vote on the measure as soon as next week.
The news came as a surprise to some district lawmakers because Biden had previously expressed opposition to the Republican measure to override the city's criminal code.
“This is news to me," House Del. Eleanor Norton (D-DC) said. "I’m very disappointed in it."
It seemed to surprise the White House press corps as well.
"The president belies that every city should have the right to self government, except if he disagrees with the outcomes of their governing process?" one reporter asked.
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"One thing that the president believes in is making sure that the streets in America, in communities across the country, are safe," Jean-Pierre responded. "That includes D.C."
The Senate GOP is hoping to force a vote next week on the updated code, which softens the punishment for homicide, robberies, and carjackings, opening Democrats up to attacks of being soft on crime should they choose to oppose the GOP's repeal.