[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 82 (Tuesday, May 16, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H2356-H2357]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          NATIONAL POLICE WEEK

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Georgia (Mr. Clyde) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. CLYDE. Mr. Speaker, during National Police Week, we honor our men 
and women in blue for their courage, dedication, and commitment to 
preserving law and order in our communities. We also remember the 
fallen, those who made the ultimate selfless sacrifice in the line of 
duty.
  On this National Police Week, Congress has the unique opportunity to 
not just say we back the blue but to actually take a stand against a 
misguided law that severely hinders the ability of police officers in 
this very city from protecting and serving the American people.
  The D.C. City Council's so-called police reform bill--the 
Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Emergency Amendment Act--
creates very serious undue burdens on the Metropolitan Police 
Department. Amidst the raging crime crisis terrorizing the streets here 
in our Nation's Capital, this law, which for 2 years has been in effect 
under emergency legislative powers, puts criminals first and MPD 
officers last.
  MPD officers overwhelmingly oppose the D.C. Council's anti-police 
law, and they are making it known with their feet. Since this 
legislation has been in place, the MPD has lost more than 1,100 
officers and currently operates at a 500-officer deficit. As officers 
are leaving the force in droves, faster than they can be replaced, the 
Metropolitan Police Department has drastically shrunk to a historic 
half-century low.
  Due to my commitment to our Constitution and passion for restoring 
law and order in our Nation's Capital, I introduced a resolution, H.J. 
Res. 42, to repeal the D.C. Council's harmful law.
  Last month this body passed my commonsense measure by a bipartisan 
vote garnering the support of 14 House Democrats. By passing my 
resolution, the House firmly rejected the council's anti-police law, 
reaffirming our support of heroic law enforcement officers and 
underscored the importance of protecting Americans' safety here in 
Washington.
  It is now up to the Senate to act before it is too late.
  Thankfully, today Senators will vote on H.J. Res. 42 as Senator J.D. 
Vance is leading the fight to repeal the D.C. Council's anti-police 
law. During this vote Senators will face a very simple question: On 
National Police Week do they stand with the officers of the 
Metropolitan Police Department, or do they embolden violent criminals 
who continue to torment and attack Americans in our Nation's Capital?
  Earlier this year when Congress was confronted with a similar 
question as we considered my previous D.C.-related resolution, H.J. 
Res. 26, to block the D.C. Council's soft-on-crime Revised Criminal 
Code Act, we had 31 Democrats in both the House and the Senate join our 
effort to strike down this radical law that would eliminate minimum 
sentences and reduce maximum penalties for numerous violent criminal 
offenses.
  I now call on these same 31 Senate Democrats to join our fight, yet 
again, by passing H.J. Res. 42 because failure to do so will only drive 
out more Metropolitan Police Department officers and deter officers 
from joining the force, meaning Washington will have fewer police 
officers on the streets to combat the dangerous crime crisis plaguing 
our Nation's Capital.
  While D.C.'s local leadership shamelessly refuses to admit there is a 
crime crisis in Washington, the data reveals that the crime crisis is 
not only real, but that it is getting worse. Compared to last year, 
violent crime is up 13 percent as the city has already faced more than 
80 homicides in just the first 4\1/2\ months of 2023. Property crime 
has increased by a whopping 30 percent, and total crime overall is up 
27 percent.

                              {time}  1030

  Clearly, the crime crisis in our Nation's Capital is dire, which is 
why residents, small businesses, visitors, and the brave officers of 
the Metropolitan Police Department are counting on Congress to act. 
They are depending on

[[Page H2357]]

us to use our authority outlined in Article I, Section 8, Clause 17 of 
the Constitution to prevent our Nation's Capital from becoming the next 
New York City, Chicago, or San Francisco. They are calling on us to 
support MPD officers, help them restore law and order, and improve 
public safety in Washington.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge the Senate to put people over politics. Join our 
effort to repeal the D.C. Council's antipolice law and send this 
commonsense bill, H.J. Res. 42, to the President's desk.
  I implore President Biden to abandon his senseless veto threat so we 
can take another crucial step in bolstering the ranks of the 
Metropolitan Police Department and boosting public safety in D.C.
  We shoulder the responsibility and the authority to make our Nation's 
Capital a safer place for all Americans, and we cannot take this duty 
lightly. It is time for the Senate to take a stand in not only 
protecting Americans in Washington but in protecting MPD officers who 
risk their lives to defend law and order in D.C.
  On this National Police Week, fulfilling our constitutional duty to 
strike down a law that will continue to severely damage the 
Metropolitan Police Department is the least we can do to show that we 
do, in fact, always back the blue.

                          ____________________