RCP White House reporter Phil Wegmann discussed how the Trump administration’s takeover of policing in the nation’s capital is going after one week, Friday on the RCP Podcast. Democrats are calling it a fascist coup, the mayor is suing to block it, and at least one former DOJ employee was arrested for throwing a sandwich at police, but do people feel safer in the city? “It has been a marked change. I mean, I’ve seen cops on horses, cops on bikes, cops in cars-they’re everywhere,” he said. “One thing that I’m fascinated by through this is the class dynamic,” said D.C. resident Phil Wegmann. “A lot of people who say crime is not a problem live on Capitol Hill or Georgetown, or a nice neighborhood … It’s different if you live in Southeast, or NoMa, or Navy Yard.” “I live not far from Union Station, and I think I’ve run out of times that I’ve called the police. I mean, I can’t keep track of the amount of times I’ve called for ODs, for homeless tents being on fire, for domestic abuse.” “Democrats, frankly, are doing themselves a disservice. I mean, Donald Trump’s been around for a decade and they’re still going to be baited into this?” “Our thoughts and prayers go out to that law enforcement officer who was on the receiving end of the $ 5 footlong,” Wegmann joked. “We get a really good picture of the psychology of that individual and some of this resistance movement. If they really thought fascism was coming to America, the response would not be to throw deli meat at a cop. Instead, what we saw is, frankly, in this DOJ individual, someone who is an entitled yuppie who thought the rules didn’t apply to him. And as a result, they wasted a perfectly good sandwich.”
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