{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://summerlee.house.gov/newsroom/press-releases/rep-summer-lee-denounces-gop-attacks-on-dc-autonomy-and-public-safety-in-house-rules-committee-testimony", "Rep. Summer Lee Denounces GOP Attacks on D.C. Autonomy and Public Safety in House Rules Committee Testimony", "2025-11-17", "2025", "2025-11", "Democrat", "House", "PA", "Summer L. Lee", "L000602", "summerlee.house.gov", "summerlee", "https://summerlee.house.gov/newsroom/press-releases", "scraper", "\u201cIf Donald Trump wants to run DC, he should resign from the presidency and run for mayor.\u201d\n\nVideo of Testimony\n\nPITTSBURGH, PA \u2013 NOVEMBER 17, 2025 \u2014 Today, Congresswoman Summer L. Lee (PA-12) testified before the House Rules Committee to oppose two Republican-led bills that would strip Washington, D.C. residents of their right to self-governance, roll back police accountability reforms, and reimpose discriminatory cash bail practices.\n\nThe bills under consideration \u2014 H.R. 5107, the \u201cCommon-Sense Law Enforcement and Accountability Now (CLEAN) in D.C. Act,\u201d and H.R. 5214, the \u201cDistrict of Columbia Cash Bail Reform Act\u201d \u2014 represent what Lee called a \u201cridiculous overreach\u201d by the federal government into local D.C. affairs.\n\n\u201cIt is completely unbelievable that we are here today yet again to micromanage Washington, D.C.,\u201d said Rep. Lee in her opening statement. \u201cThe people handling D.C.\u2019s government should be local leaders who are accountable to the people who live here and who actually know the city \u2014 not some Member of Congress who has never left Capitol Hill or Navy Yard neighborhoods. If Donald Trump wants to run D.C., he should resign from the presidency and run for mayor. And my Republican colleagues are welcome to run for D.C. Council.\u201d\n\nLee sharply criticized Republicans for putting Americans\u2019 health and safety at risk during a 42-day government shutdown, even as they now claim to be acting in the name of public safety. \u201c Republicans have shown a lack of ability to govern the federal government, yet they want to take on local issues,\u201d Lee said, adding that \u201cmillions of Americans are seeing huge spikes in health insurance costs of up to 114%, and Republicans refuse to act.\u201d\n\nOn the District of Columbia Cash Bail Reform Act, Lee said:\n\n\u201cUnder this bill, if you are charged with certain crimes, you will automatically be locked up before your trial. For other crimes, the bill will require cash bail or a bond. This will make D.C.\u2019s local law far stricter than federal law. You shouldn\u2019t automatically be locked up based on a criminal charge, before you are proven guilty. It seems Republicans have forgotten about innocent until proven guilty and the Fifth Amendment \u2014 core tenets of our democracy.\u201d\n\nOn the CLEAN D.C. Act, which repeals D.C.\u2019s 2022 Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform law, Lee stated:\n\n\u201cThese measures increased accountability for bad actors. They improved training for police officers. They strengthened independent civilian oversight and expanded public access to body-worn camera footage. None of these reforms are radical anti-police measures. They are the first, small steps toward justice \u2014 and this bill repeals all of that.\u201d\n\nLee urged her colleagues to reject both bills, declaring:\n\n\u201cBoth of these bills are opposed by D.C. residents. They are opposed by the mayor and council. They were opposed by D.C.\u2019s Member of Congress in the Oversight Committee. We should reject them. I urge the majority to keep their hands off D.C.\u201d\n\nThe hearing, which was livestreamed on theHouse Rules Committee website, featured debate over D.C.\u2019s right to home rule \u2014 a principle supported by both Republican and Democratic presidents, including Richard Nixon.\n\nRep. Lee\u2019s remarks come as part of her ongoing effort to defend D.C.\u2019s autonomy and civil rights, followingher previous viral comments on Republican efforts to \u201ccriminalize poverty and punish local democracy.\u201d\n\nFull Opening Remarks:\n\nThank you, Madam Chair.\n\nIt is completely unbelievable that we are here today yet again to micromanage Washington, DC. The federal government was shut down for a record 42 days.\n\nThe Republicans, who control the House, Senate and Presidency, put Americans\u2019 health and safety at risk, even making multiple attempts to block the most vulnerable Americans from accessing benefits that keep them from starving. Republicans have shown a lack of ability to govern the federal government, yet they want to take on local issues.\n\nMillions of Americans are seeing huge spikes in health insurance costs of up to 114%.\n\nYour monthly premiums could more than double. And Republicans refuse to act. Multiple federal courts ruled that the President must allow SNAP funds to be distributed, yet the president ignored the courts and refused to comply with the law. And still my Republican colleagues insist that micromanaging DC is the best use of our time.\n\nToday, the rules committee will consider two pieces of legislation that are a ridiculous overreach by our federal government. DC has over 700,000 residents \u2013 that\u2019s more than 2 states. DC taxpayers don\u2019t just pay federal taxes \u2013 they pay more per capita than any state. DC as a whole contributes more total federal taxes than 26 states.\n\nThe people handling DC\u2019s government should be local leaders who are accountable to the people who live here and who actually know the city. Not some Member of Congress who has never left Capitol Hill or Navy Yard neighborhoods.\n\nIf Donald Trump wants to run DC, he should resign from the presidency and run for mayor. And my Republican colleagues are welcome to run for DC Council.\n\nWe all support public safety, but the federal government should be a partner to DC, and we should focus on actual solutions.\n\nDespite the Trump Administration\u2019s repeated claims that violent crime in DC is rising, the Republican investigation into crime statistics at the Metropolitan Police Department has confirmed what we already knew: Crime has been going down. The Committee\u2019s investigation has also repeatedly highlighted the steps DC government officials have taken to bring crime down from its recent peak in 2023. The DC council passed legislation to fill gaps in the criminal code, to fix unintentional problems created by existing laws, and to empower local courts.\n\nWe have also repeatedly heard about the importance of maintaining that critical partnership between local enforcement, local elected officials, and the communities they serve. It is the responsibility of DC\u2019s elected officials to address local issues \u2013 not Congress.\n\nToday, the majority is proposing 2 bills which will both attack DC\u2019s right to self-government. First, we have the H.R. 5214 \u2013 The District of Columbia Cash Bail Reform Act. Under this bill, if you are charged with certain crimes, you will automatically be locked up before your trial. For other crimes, the bill will require cash bail or a bond. This will make DC\u2019s local law far stricter than federal law.\n\nPre-trial release should be based on a judge\u2019s determination of flight risk, and danger to the community, not just on a blanket mandate from Congress. When a person\u2019s freedom is at stake they deserve to be heard as an individual rather than be painted with a broad brush. You shouldn\u2019t automatically be locked up based on a criminal charge, before you are proven guilty. It seems Republicans have forgotten about innocent until proven guilty and the fifth amendment, core tenants of our democracy.\n\nAnd our system should not treat you more harshly just because you are poor or from D.C. Rich defendants are not less prone to criminality than poor defendants. This bill will lock up more poor people, and more innocent people. It is unfair to DC and unfair to innocent people.\n\nNext, we have the CLEAN DC Act\u2014which repeals commonsense criminal justice reforms passed by DC\u2019s elected representatives in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests. We know that cities and communities all over the country passed similar reforms to increase trust, accountability, and safety.\n\nIn DC, these measures increased accountability for bad actors.\n\nThey improved training for police officers. They strengthened independent civilian oversight and expanded public access to body-worn camera footage. None of these reforms are radical anti-police measures. None of them are particularly transformative.\n\nThey are the first, small steps toward justice and this bill repeals all of that. It would damage what little trust there is between the DC police and the communities they protect and serve. We should oppose it.\n\nBoth of these bills are opposed by DC residents. They are opposed by the mayor and council. They were opposed by DC\u2019s Member of Congress in the Oversight committee. We should reject them. I urge the majority to keep their hands off DC and I yield back.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:52:45Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://summerlee.house.gov/newsroom/press-releases/rep-summer-lee-denounces-gop-attacks-on-dc-autonomy-and-public-safety-in-house-rules-committee-testimony"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.922009814530611, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}