Rantz: As crime crisis worsens, Democrats refuse to accept responsibility

From Seattle to Tacoma, the Puget Sound region is experiencing a clear surge in violent crime, especially amongst juveniles.

Nearly every day, locals wake up to news of another homicide, car jacking, armed robbery or drug bust. It’s no longer shocking — it’s expected. We might notice when there isn’t a violent crime reported.

But local leaders aren’t stepping up with a plan to address the crisis. They’re barely admitting we have a crisis to begin with.

Why not? Because they don’t want to be held accountable for the role they played in getting us here.

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Area crime crisis worsens thanks to Democrats

With the Major League Baseball All-Star Game far behind us, Seattle’s SODO neighborhood has returned to normal.

Police responded to gunshots this week, only to find a man dead at an intersection. There are no suspects. The afternoon before, in broad daylight, an armed robbery turned into a gun fight between motorcyclists. Two of the three involved were shot.

In Seattle’s Beacon Hill neighborhood, even more violence: a fatal stabbing after what sounds to be a domestic violence call. The victim was just 21 years old.

In Pierce County, we get the same stories.

A 15-year-old boy was shot multiple times in the parking lot of an apartment complex. Neither the victim, nor his parents will cooperate with police. A woman and teenage girl were shot in broad daylight in central Tacoma. Both are expected to survive, but there has been no information on suspects. And three teens and an adult were arrested for an alleged drive-by shooting. Police say they even shot multiple shots at an officer, who luckily escaped without any injury.

Who will step up?

All this crime begs a simple question: where is Democrat leadership? Where is Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell or Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards?

Where are members of the King or Pierce County Council? Where are the Democrat representatives and state senators who supposedly care about these communities?

Stepping up to lead doesn’t mean sending out a press release or offering a strongly worded sound bite without any substance only to ignore the issue until pressed about it two months later. It doesn’t mean putting out some meaningless tweet that no one sees so they can say they, technically, said something to avoid being criticized for their silence. It means sustained, public messaging that they know what’s happening, while explaining what they’re doing to address the crisis.

But local leaders refuse to even admit we have a crime crisis. And they certainly won’t offer a plan to stymie it. And the reason why is simple: Democrats don’t want to be held accountable for the crime crisis they helped to create.

Yes, Democrats are to blame

Democrats passed laws and implemented policies that created this culture of lawlessness.

It started with police defunding. Then, prosecutors stopped prosecuting, judges stopped jailing, and it was all to the benefit of restorative justice programs that don’t work, but keep getting millions of dollars in funding.

At the state level, Democrats effectively legalized drugs, stopped cops from contacting juvenile suspects (and possible witnesses) without a lawyer present, and banned them from vehicular pursuits in almost all cases.

It was the perfect recipe for a crime crisis.

And yes — it’s the fault of Democrats. Republicans control neither the city councils here nor the state legislature in Olympia. This is not their doing. Democrats did this.

But Democrats can play heroes

Democrats must acknowledge the crisis they created. And that means walking back their laws and policies. If they don’t, we’ll continue to see more blood shed, stolen cars, busted out storefronts, and the never ending surge of fatal drug overdoses.

It also means local media needs to step up coverage. Rather than offer transactional stories about crime, reporters must tie it to the laws and policies that are to blame. It may cost them access to Harrell or upset Democrat leadership in Olympia. But if they care about the region, it’s worth it. And believe me, as someone with nearly zero access to Democrats, they will still be able to do their job. I do mine without relying on them.

But which local Democrat is brave enough to admit fault? Which one can put their ideology and ego aside to be held accountable, and play hero with a viable plan?

Unfortunately, not a single Democrat lawmaker comes to mind.

Listen to The Jason Rantz Show on weekday afternoons from 3:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m. on KTTH 770 AM (HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). He is the author of the book “What’s Killing America: Inside the Radical Left’s Tragic Destruction of Our Cities.” Subscribe to the podcast. Follow @JasonRantz on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Check back frequently for more news and analysis.

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