It’s fascinating to watch the situation across the Bay, in San Francisco, concerning the recall of their District Attorney, Chesa Boudin. Boudin was elected as a progressive in that famously progressive city. In his campaign he promised a “decarceration program” in order to reduce the number of prisoners, who were often people of color. He promised also to resist efforts by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in their pursuit of undocumented people. His pledge to end cash bail was widely seen as helpful to poor people, who generally can’t afford it. In general, Boudin seemed to support the “defund the police” movement, although he never came out and said so.
All these positions resonated with San Francisco voters, and Boudin took office early in 2020. But a series of sensational crimes quickly threw shade on his rising star, and it wasn’t long before his critics pounced. The D.A.’s clearance rate for burglary fell to low levels, even as Boudin himself blamed the rise of burglary on “economic desperation” rather than outright criminal behavior. His reputation was further tarnished after a repeat offender, driving a stolen car, ran over two women, killing them. Boudin, as public defender, had earlier represented the alleged killer; he came under intense fire, with the head of San Francisco’s police union blasting his “criminals-first agenda.” Shortly after that, two separate recall efforts began. The first did not qualify for the ballot, but the second is on track to do so.
Whether or not Boudin actually is recalled is beside the point, and so is the charge that his brand of “progressive” politics is letting criminals off the hook. Arguments can be made every which way. What the recall poignantly symbolizes, though, is a shifting in the mood of ordinary citizens. Even in famously liberal San Francisco, people have had it. They’re fed up with crime, with homelessness and encampments, with crazy people wandering the streets, with brazen shoplifting which the police seem powerless to stop, with drivers running red lights, with gang warfare, with mounds of garbage everywhere. They’re tired of government that seems unable to do much of anything to address the problems that plague and frighten them. They hear politicians talking about social justice, about restorative justice, about reparations, about equity, about ending structural racism, about addressing the root causes of crime—and they scratch their heads and wonder why those politicians won’t address crime itself, which they perceive as the central threat to their happiness and wellbeing.
Nor is this situation peculiar to San Francisco. It’s happening everywhere, including here in Oakland, where the most progressive politicians are suddenly not so sure of themselves as they used to be. Just a year ago they were demanding that the Oakland Police Department’s budget be cut by 50%. Now, they’re afraid of their own constituents, who like the people of San Francisco want more cops on the street, not fewer.
We have next year an election for Alameda County District Attorney. The Coalition for a Better Oakland has endorsed Jimmie Wilson, who’s currently a Deputy District Attorney. We recently sat with him and received assurances that he’s not a defunder and that he understands the role that a strong, fully-staffed police department plays in defending public safety. What we hope Mr. Wilson, and all the other powers in Alameda County and Oakland, understand, is that their responsibility to guarantee the safety of the citizens, “from day to day and from hour to hour” is, in Winston Churchill’s words, “direct and inalienable.”
Steve Heimoff