The Patriot Post® · Rampant Crime, Democrats, and the Midterms

“Thank God I live in Afghanistan,” quipped one observer. “Looks like White Rage again,” quipped another.

We’re not sure what it says about us personally, but when we first saw the ransacking of that Philadelphia Wawa store, we immediately thought of the political implications. We suspect every Democrat running for office did too because an episode like this can’t be good for business. Indeed, it only reinforces the Democrats’ hard-earned soft-on-crime brand.

Nor are we sure what it says about us as a nation when well-armed teams of FBI agents, 15-20 at a time, are busy raiding the homes of peaceful pro-life activists and terrorizing their young children while this sort of thing goes on in one big city after another. But it can’t be good.

“Dozens of rampaging youths trashed a Wawa convenience store in northeast Philadelphia Saturday night,” reports the New York Post, “hurling food and drinks at one another as one belligerent young woman twerked on a counter. … The rowdy group of about 100 young people were captured on video … as they ransacked the shop at about 8:20 p.m. and recorded the pandemonium on their phones.”

Their parents must be brimming with pride.

If you somehow haven’t yet seen the video, it’s worth watching, if only to see the young woman, seemingly impervious to all that’s happening around her, ask the store clerk to make her a sandwich:

A large group of criminals ransacked a WaWa store tonight in Philadelphia pic.twitter.com/bviiexZJR2

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) September 25, 2022

This is the failure of progressivism, and of the Democrats’ policies generally. Republicans, while far from perfect, tend to stand for law and order and for individual accountability. Democrats, though, will probably try to chalk this up to “root causes” and “white supremacy” while ignoring the fact that Philly has been a one-party town for decades, and that the city’s district attorney, Larry Krasner, is one of those Soros-funded lefties and a notorious coddler of criminals.

“Police say they are working with the district attorney’s office to determine charges for the suspects,” reports Fox News, apparently unaware that the district attorney is Larry Krasner. “They say one potential charge is rioting, which is a felony.”

Yeah, right. Let’s check back in a month and see just how many of these hoodlums have been charged with felonies.

Back to the political implications: We were reminded, too, of what former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki presciently said over the weekend: “[The Democrats] also know that crime is a huge vulnerability for Democrats — I would say one of the biggest vulnerabilities. And if you look at Pennsylvania, for example, what’s been interesting to me is it’s always you follow the money, and where are people spending money. And in Pennsylvania, the Republicans have been spending millions of dollars on the air on crime ads against [John] Fetterman because that’s where they see his vulnerability. So yes, the economy is hanging over everything. But you do have to look at state-by-state factors, and crime is a huge issue in the Pennsylvania race.”

Psaki’s analysis was spot on. Right down to the state. And while Democrats are aware of the problem and have begun to talk tough on crime, just as they did prior to the 2020 presidential election, it’s just that: talk.

Just how deeply embedded is the Democrats’ soft-on-crime reputation? Consider this: A March Gallup poll found that 80% of Americans worry personally about crime, and a recent NBC News poll found that Republicans have a 23-point advantage on the question of which party voters trust more to tackle crime.

That 23-point bulge just got a bit bigger.

Crime is a big deal, and the Democrats are miserable failures at controlling it. And you have an opportunity to register your displeasure with that reality on November 8.