DC Business Owner Planning Move to Virginia, Decries High Prices, Rampant Crime in the Nation's Capital

Among the many pithy turns of phrase my maternal grandfather used to roll out, one that comes to mind this morning is, "When you're flat on your ass, the only way you can look is up." This seems to be where business owners in the nation's capital find themselves on this last day of 2023.

According to the Metropolitan Washington Restaurant Association, 52 restaurants in D.C. have shuttered in 2023.
The nation's capital is grappling with an escalating crime surge, having surpassed a 20-year record-high in homicides with 261 murders as of Dec. 14, according to Metropolitan Police Department data. Robberies are also skyrocketing, increasing 69% year-to-date, while theft is up 24%.
Additionally, motor vehicle theft is up 84% and violent crime increased 39% year-over-year.

Remember, we're talking about the nation's capital here. The seat of government for the most prosperous, powerful nation on the planet - or, at least, we were. And the District is an utter disaster. A Congressman, no less, was carjacked recently.

There are several ways to address this kind of rampant, runaway crime. Allowing the citizenry to arm themselves in their defense would be a good start, but this is something to which the District's municipal leaders have always been hostile; fascinating, isn't it, that a fundamental right, defined by and guaranteed in the Constitution, is largely denied to the residents of the city in which that Constitution resides. Carjackers and robbers grow less enthusiastic when they know their intended targets might be armed.

But the real answer is business. Businesses bring prosperity, and you can only have a safe business environment when crime is under control -- and crime in the nation's capital is out of control. One D.C. business owner who plans to move his business across the river to Virginia had some pointed comments:

REX Management CEO Noe Landini, who recently closed his Washington, D.C. restaurant, told "Fox & Friends" Friday that marked police cruisers and ambulances have been carjacked.
"We had an American Red Cross van that was supposed to feed the homeless the other day get carjacked. I mean, it's out of control," he said.
Landini and his colleagues chose not to renew their restaurant lease, claiming it did not make sense from an investment standpoint. He also questioned city leadership and their response to crime.
"What's the long game here? Like, what is the long game for mayors in D.C. or in New York to, like, completely destroy their city and not provide the resources that we need to conduct business?" Landini asked.

In 1973, the District was granted local control under the District of Columbia Home Rule Act of 1973. It's time Congress repealed that law and took back direct control of the District. Most of the catastrophic problems vexing our big cities can't be addressed quite like this, but for crying out loud, we can't just accept the national capital being completely out of control. Congress, managing the District directly, may well, as my Brit friend says, make a complete dog's breakfast of the whole thing. But then again, they may not. What have we got to lose? If Congress manages somehow to improve things, D.C. can serve as an example to our other major cities, most of which are in one stage or another of a similar meltdown.

The District of Columbia's residents and business owners are flat on their asses. The only way they can look is up.