Testimony provided House Judiciary Committee A report out Wednesday highlights the impact some “soft on crime” policies have had on ordinary Americans, from brutal street attacks to the fentanyl epidemic.
“Journalists and politicians love to repeat the statistic that immigrants commit fewer crimes than Americans,” said Amanda Kiefer. Victim of an attack by an illegal immigrant told members of Congress gathered in San Francisco.
“Even if there wasn’t manipulation, I think all of this is irrelevant,” Kiefer said. “If we’re letting more criminals in, that’s too much. We already have too many criminals in our country, and we don’t really do anything to stop them from committing more crimes.”
Kiefer was with friends in 2008 when 20-year-old Alexander Izaguirre stole her purse and then attempted to run her over with a waiting SUV, fracturing her skull.
Trump argues with Harris and moderators during heated presidential debate
Izaguirre was in the country illegally and had been arrested on drug charges a few months before the attack. But he was free thanks to a program started by then-District Attorney Kamala Harris that allowed nonviolent offenders to avoid prison by entering job training and having their records expunged.
Vice President Kamala Harris during the debate at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia on Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024. (Doug Mills/The New York Times/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Keefer’s testimony at Wednesday’s “Consequences of Soft-on-Crime Policies” hearing attacked the programs that put people like Izaguirre back on the streets, and accused the politicians responsible of having a “commitment to the Marxist theory that criminals are simply victims of capitalism, and that somehow a job or assistance will end their tendency toward violent crime.”
“No-bail laws, late convictions and leniency driven by identity politics have put violent people back on the streets to harm others,” Keefer said. “There is no fear of being caught or any reason to stop committing crimes.”
Trump argues with Harris and moderators during heated presidential debate
“Our Vice President encouraged defunding the police in the summer of 2020 and supporting bail funds to get violent offenders out of jail: many of whom committed horrific crimes.”
Keefer stressed that many victims of violent crimes could have been saved, raising concerns about the “backlog of sexual assault kits” and “our porous border.”
Representative Jerry Nadler in the House, January 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
“It’s heartbreaking,” Keefer said. “It’s unfair. It’s heartbreaking and Americans need to stop tolerating it. No one is taking responsibility for failing to keep the American people safe.”
Representative Jerry NadlerThe committee’s ranking member, D-N.Y., argued that “it’s important to listen to crime victims and others affected,” but charged that Wednesday’s hearing “had no intention of disguising the purpose of this hearing … to attack the growing popularity of Vice President Harris and Governor Walz.”
Nadler sought to distance Kiefer’s suffering from a broader indictment of similar policies and programs.
“Of course, no crime prevention or reform strategy is perfect, and there will always be those who slip through the cracks and continue to break the law,” Nadler said. “That is what happened with the man who snatched Ms. Kiefer’s purse in 2008 while she was at a ‘Back on Track’ event in San Francisco.”
Rep. Andy Biggs speaks to reporters on Capitol Hill on July 31, 2023.
“When then-District Attorney Harris discovered that the program mistakenly admitted illegal immigrants who were not eligible for jobs in the United States, she immediately closed the loophole,” Nadler said.
Nadler also came under fire He closed his eyes and lowered his head during congressional testimony on Tuesday about the impact of migrant crime on victims’ families — sparking criticism that leading Democrats were not taking the issue seriously and were disrespecting those grieving.
Representative andy biggestsHowever, the Arizona Republican added that “if Democrats succeed in their policy goals, the left-wing criminal justice policies of Manhattan, Chicago, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, California, Minnesota will become commonplace across the country and actually influence the enforcement of criminal codes at the federal level.”
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“I hope this hearing will serve as a reminder to Americans to demand that leadership abandon these policies that have made their communities less safe, and I hope it will also remind Congress of our need for federal legislation,” Biggs said. “Violent crime in Minnesota has increased significantly due to the lingering effects of the riots of the summer 2020, in addition to prosecutors’ refusal to hold perpetrators accountable.”
Fox News Digital’s Michael Lee contributed to this report.
