DC Latino Caucus Supports Councilmembers Charles Allen and Brianne Nadeau Against Recalls; Urges Residents to #DeclineToSign Petitions; Calls on DC Democratic Party to Respond To GOP Influence
Washington, D.C. (February 23, 2024) – The DC Latino Caucus, an affiliate of the DC Democratic Party, supports longtime public servants and elected Democratic Councilmembers Charles Allen and Brianne Nadeau against recent efforts launched to recall them in response to the increase in violent city crime. We urge citizens in Wards 1 and 6 to reject these recall measures. We also call on our colleagues at the DC Democratic Party to carefully craft an appropriate response that balances the promotion of democracy and the protection of our home rule against Republican and outside interference.
The leadership and members of our organization are as frustrated as everyone else with the clear increase in violent crime impacting our city—and we also demand solutions. Indeed, Latinos, immigrants, and other Brown and Black communities are most often the victims of such crimes, whether that be in our homes, underinvested neighborhoods, construction work sites, small businesses, and elsewhere. But we also think that the best approach is to take a careful look at the true causes of the current crime surge in our city, rather than acting out of anger to recall public officials with longstanding records of ethical and dedicated public service. Councilmembers Allen and Nadeau, and the rest of the Council, have done their imperfect best in attempting to balance the urgent needs for public safety in our city with the desire to ensure the equitable policing of our communities.
Councilmembers Allen and Nadeau did not “defund the police.”
Despite the claims about “defunding the police,” the DC Council (including Allen and Nadeau) has consistently approved a budget of over half a billion dollars every year for the last several years.(1) That includes 2020, when a one-time budget reduction of $15 million was diverted to otherwise unfunded victim and social services. Yet in that year, which is the source of fury among recall advocates, an infusion of federal money increased the total MPD budget to $621 million! (1)
A $500+ million police budget places Washington DC as #1 in spending per capita ($1337 in FY20) on police and corrections among all states in the country.(2)
We can debate in good faith whether the police budget should be increased, but to say that it has been slashed by Allen and Nadeau, or the rest of the Council, is simply and factually wrong.
Allen and Nadeau support immediate crime deterrence measures.
Allen and Nadeau support Council efforts to increase deterrence, punish crime, and keep dangerous criminals off our streets. They both support the SECURE DC Act pending before the Council, which:
· Increases the authority of judges to impose pretrial detention on suspects believed to have committed a violent crime;
· Allows creation of drug-free zones to disrupt drug-related hot spots;
· Creates new felonies for committing violent crimes with firearms; and
· Expands the definitions of carjacking and retail theft to account for what we are seeing in the District. (3)
Other crime control measures they have supported include:
· $25,000 signing bonuses for new officers to expand our police force;
· Banning “ghost guns”;
· Increasing penalties for automatic weapons; and
· “Red flag” laws to remove guns from potentially dangerous individuals.
Solving the crime problem requires a “whole of government” approach that Allen and Nadeau have championed.
The criminal justice system depends on the police, courts, prosecutors, crime lab, corrections, and other entities working well together. Much information has come to light recently about low prosecution rates, the loss of the crime lab’s accreditation, backed up courts, and other problems that all result in criminal defendants being released or not prosecuted. The Council can—and does—provide ample funding for these institutions, but more action is needed from all of them to see a real reduction in crime.
A ”whole of government” approach must also address the long-term needs of residents so that some do not end up pushed to commit crime. A government that ensures that all residents have food, housing, employment, education, and recreational opportunities is the one that will be most successful deterring crime. Allen and Nadeau have gotten this right and have relentlessly fought to ensure that the residents most in need have these things.
Republican and non-DC money is funding a large portion of the “Recall Allen” campaign, and Democratic voters in the District should be aware of GOP attempts to meddle with our home-rule government.
A recent analysis by the Washington City Paper uncovered that national Republican staffers and lobbyists are behind the funding of a majority of the “Recall Allen” campaign.(4) To be sure, the campaign is not limited to just Republicans, and every resident has the right to participate in our political process. But it is disturbing and telling that the majority of funding comes from individuals in the GOP--a party that has consistently meddled in the District’s governance affairs, tried to use the city to score political points, and whose leader Donald Trump has said he will conduct a “federal takeover” of the city should he become president again.
Reviewing the “Recall Allen” financial statement, we also could not help but notice that a good number of the largest donations came from outside Ward 6 as well as from outside of Washington DC (Idaho, Florida, Rhode Island, New York, etc.)(5)
We think it’s important that DC voters know the extent of Republican and outside money that is behind much of the “Recall Allen” campaign and consider that fact when presented with a request to sign a recall petition.
The DC Democratic Party Must consider GOP and outside influence and its potential impact on the fairness of the recall process, and respond accordingly in defense of DC’s autonomy and home rule.
We urge the DC Democratic Party to consider the consequences of failing to answer against Republican and outside attempts to interfere in DC politics with the “Recall Allen” campaign. The mandate of the DC Democratic Party is to empower voters in democratic processes, which includes recalls. But the potentially outsized impact of GOP and outside influence in this process has grave potential to damage or destabilize DC’s democracy and home rule.
We urge the Party to consider an appropriate response, even if the response falls short of fully opposing the recall(s). That could include exposing inaccuracies or biases in the information being presented to voters to help ensure a neutral and impartial voting environment.
Here is what we can do to support Allen and Nadeau to oppose the recalls:
· If you are approached by anyone collecting signatures for a recall petition, #DeclineToSign
· Volunteer or donate to help Charles Allen fight the recall at https://www.neighborsunitedward6.com .
· We will publish information for supporting Brianne Nadeau when it becomes available.
The recall process is a valid means for citizens to express their views in a democracy. It is a powerful tool that should be used wisely and backed by clear evidence of wrongdoing. We believe that these recall efforts against Councilmembers Allen and Nadeau are misdirected. The crime problem is real and demands both short- and long-term solutions from every part of our government and without unwelcome outside interference. Recalling these public servants will not fix the problem.
Respectfully,
Jose L. Barrios
President, DC Latino Caucus
On behalf of the DC Latino Caucus Board and Executive Committee
1) Government of the District of Columbia, Metropolitan Police Department Budgets, FY 2020-2023, https://cfo.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/ocfo/publication/attachments/fa_mpd_chapter_2023m.pdf
2) Fox59, “These States Spend the Most on Policing and Corrections,” https://fox59.com/news/national-world/these-states-spend-the-most-on-policing-and-corrections/
3) Fox 5 DC, Secure DC Crime Bill: Council Unanimously Passes Legislation to Reduce Crime in the District, https://www.fox5dc.com/news/secure-dc-crime-bill-council-unanimously-passes-legislation-to-reduce-crime-in-the-district
4) Washington City Paper, National Republicans are Pumping Money Into the Push to Recall Charles Allen, Once Again Using D.C. Crime to Score Political Points, https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/678688/national-republicans-are-pumping-money-into-the-push-to-recall-charles-allen-once-again-using-d-c-crime-to-score-political-points/
5) Government of the District of Columbia, Office of Campaign Finance, Report of Receipts and Expenditures, Committee to Recall Charles Allen, https://efiling.ocf.dc.gov/Schedules/EntireReport/32594