D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser lost this one on all fronts.
Almost two years ago (*20 COVID years) D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser had the phrase “Black Lives Matter” painted in big yellow letters on 16th street near the White House. She naively thought that this was sticking it to Trump, that the BLM would support it, and that no one would know she took $3 million dollars from the coronavirus aid funding to make the plaza permanent.
Well, to quote former President Donald Trump: “wrong.”
Trump was too busy to deal with virtue signaling; the Black Lives Matter DC chapter called the move “performative and a distraction”; and now we know she dipped into the pandemic relief funds late last year to make the street art a permanent installation, despite public outcry.
“For months, the multilane street was closed to car traffic. During that time, it became a site of protests, celebrations, performances, yoga classes and more,” the Washington Post reported. But businesses on the street also asked when they would be able to have cars drive up to their doors again.”
“Cars were allowed back on the street earlier this year, and Bowser said on Thursday that the city has completed construction to allow a more durable compromise: one lane for traffic on each side of the road, with a 14-foot-wide pedestrian zone in the center of the road for visitors to take in the giant letters.”
Now everyone can enjoy the thing nobody asked for —paid for in pandemic cash!
“A D.C. stimulus request obtained by Breitbart News shows that Bowser’s fiscal year 2022 budget allocated $3 million from an American Rescue Plan (ARP) request for stimulus funding to make BLM Plaza permanent. Biden signed the American Rescue Plan early into his administration to boost coronavirus aid,” Brietbart reports.
So $3 million to lock in a message that, according to BLM D.C., is synonymous with “Defund the Police” —all while D.C. is experiencing an historic spike in crime?
“In 2021, when Bowser wanted to make the BLM Plaza permanent, the city had experienced over 202 homicides, which is the highest number since 2003,” Breitbart reports. “In 2021 alone, D.C. had cut more than $9.5 million from its police budget.”
No surprise that Bowser’s disapproval rating has jumped up 16 points over the last two years.
If you’re ever in Washington D.C., and you find yourself near 16th street, make sure to stop by and see the plaza —it’s a beautiful place to get mugged in.
Thanks for nothing, Mayor Bowser.
