Essentially, Mendelson says he's pulling the criminal code revision altogether, which he says stops the congressional review that was expected to block it from taking effect.

— Martin Austermuhle (@maustermuhle) March 6, 2023

"Crime easily lends itself to demagogic rhetoric," says Mendelson.

— Martin Austermuhle (@maustermuhle) March 6, 2023

"We need to calm things down," says Mendelson. "I expect there could be more trouble and I'd like to back things off… and there's less mischief-making," he says more broadly about Congress getting involved in D.C.'s local affairs.

— Martin Austermuhle (@maustermuhle) March 6, 2023

[Maybe they should have considered that when they voted for this bill. Muriel Bowser didn’t veto it because of next year’s election, either. She vetoed it because it’s a radical move in the wrong direction. Mendelson probably is trying to put a brave face on this, but it’s nonsense. He’s pulling it because he knows the Senate is lining up now to embarrass him and his council. — Ed]