Why the Democrats suck on crime

Why the Democrats suck on crime

Peter A. Hempel

08/28/25

Republicans have been leveraging “out of control” crime as a campaign issue at least since the days of Nixon. “Law and order” has always been cynical on their part; even as they call loudly for draconian law enforcement in the streets, they continually protect the criminals at the top – and within their own ranks.

Democrats have responded by digging themselves into a deep hole on the crime issue. In part, because Blacks and minorities are a key constituency for the Democrats, many Democrats love to bend over backwards to show their understanding of the distortions of systemic racism and how it affects basic opportunities, education and career options, and, of course, treatment within the criminal justice system. (This is reinforced by the very different approach to policing towards crimes like marijuana possession or underage drinking for middle-class white kids – where we know they’ll “grow out of it,” while for black kids it’s just the beginning of their inevitable path to gang membership, drug dealing, and jail.)

One result has been a deep suspicion (frequently legitimate) that police officers are racist and the whole system is permeated by racism at every step. There have certainly been clear cases of racist police brutality, and these have helped justify the idea on the left that young Black men, in particular, should distrust the police, and that well-meaning liberals should look upon every arrest and conviction of a Black person as racially motivated. The endpoint of this line of thinking is the “woke” mantra: “Defund the police!”

That’s it? Then what?

Certainly, our prison population is disproportionately Black and minority. Minority populations are disproportionately poor, on average less well educated, and more likely to live in high-crime areas. While middle-class and upper-middle-class (white) kids tend to grow up in households with expectations of college education, and in an environment where parents celebrate their children’s academic achievements and where everyone around them has achieved some kind of success, most kids in minority neighborhoods have no role models for education or success in their lives. They are far more likely to not have a father in the picture. They certainly are not likely to have the benefits of all the travel and enrichment programs that middle and upper-middle-class parents love to provide for their kids.

And while some individuals defy all odds and become educated and successful (my former doctor had grown up in the inner city in Newark, and, of course, there’s Neil DeGrasse Tyson – and there are many more), it’s hardly fair to point to them and say, “Hey, they did it, anyone can do it.” If I had grown up in an inner-city environment, I certainly cannot guarantee that I would’ve been successful in any way.

The fact is that systemic racism and poverty erode culture – cultural expectations and cultural norms. Not knowing if you’re going to have any food to eat that day makes a difference in pretty much everything about your life. So, if the residents of our jails are disproportionately Black and minority, and even the number of people arrested is disproportional, this is the endpoint of something much larger.

Obviously, better schools (not happening while Republicans have anything to do with it) and social programs and social interventions are essential. But in the meantime, we have a real-world problem, and denial is not a solution. It’s fine and dandy for rich white college kids to join in the call for defunding the police; the areas where they live are not the problem. But what about the people – you know, the Black and minority people liberals are so protective of – who live in non-middle-class neighborhoods? Young mothers (often single) who are afraid to even take their kids to the neighborhood park because of gang violence and drugs. They may not trust the police all that much, but anarchy is not doing much for them either. In the end, it’s Blacks and minorities who suffer disproportionately from crime. (I’m leaving white-collar crime out of this equation – white-collar crime is mainly for white people.)

So, in DC, for example, Trump calls in the National Guard. Everyone on the right cheers. They are afraid of criminals, and of minorities. They want vengeance against a world that has gone out of control.

Liberals point to statistics that homicides are down and say, “Hey, no problemo. Go away. Everything is fine here.” And of course, many of the commentators on newscasts live in nice neighborhoods – not necessarily crime-free, but hardly hellholes in need of National Guard assistance. And when these people do call 911, the police arrive promptly and listen with concern.

So, when Trump calls out the National Guard, Dems respond with righteousness, regardless of the reality that faces other people. And Republicans and Trumpies have their worldview vindicated. No need for better education or social programs, who cares about about wealth inequality, just send in the Marines. Is Trump’s move a sham? Of course. But that doesn’t mean it’s not a winner/

Rudy Giuliani was elected mayor of New York on the basis of a genuine record of fighting organized crime, and on the appeal of his “broken windows” theory of policing (i.e. not enforcing low-level laws erodes respect for all laws). We’ve certainly seen examples of this theory, notably in places like San Francisco, where criminals feel free to steal from stores since there is no effective punishment (basically no punishment at all) for “minor” (property) crime. Or suppose you’re a standard New Yorker, dutifully paying your three dollars or whatever for your subway ride and you see a bunch of (black) teens jumping the turnstile with no hint of concern (what subway worker – black or white – is going to want to leave the safety of their locked ticket booth to confront them?). Another “victimless” crime. But one that sends a message.

The call for an end to criminal bail is a gift to the right. People want criminals to be punished, and they don’t trust a system that simply sends criminals back to the street.

I’m pretty much a believer in tough on crime. I don’t want dangerous people out on the streets. But to me, that also means throwing white-collar criminals in jail, holding corporate polluters accountable, holding corporate executives legally accountable for corporate crimes, treating large-scale tax cheating and tax evasion as treason (with their accountants going to jail with them), and preferably the death sentence for corrupt public officials. It ain’t that hard.

Until the Democrats figure out what the fuck they really want to do about crime, we’re going to keep losing. We don’t deserve to win.