A Democratic mayoral forum in Washington, D.C. descended into chaos Saturday as candidates Kenyan McDuffie and Janeese Lewis George traded accusations over who bears responsibility for rising utility costs, with the exchange growing loud enough that the moderator threatened to start cursing in what was described as "the house of the Lord."
The clash centered on the Public Service Commission's approval of a $33.4 million increase in overall revenue, a decision expected to raise gas bills for D.C. residents by an estimated $11.24 per month. Both candidates pointed fingers at each other. Neither offered residents a plan to undo the damage.
McDuffie, the former chairman of the D.C. Council, went after Lewis George's voting record on PSC appointments. The D.C. Council confirms commissioners to the Public Service Commission, and McDuffie argued his opponent had the chance to block them.
Every single time she had the opportunity to vote against the public service commissioners, she voted yes — not once but twice.
Lewis George, the Ward 4 councilmember, fired back by pointing at McDuffie's own role atop the council, Fox News reported. Her response was blunt: "I've never voted — he's been the chair." She pressed the point further: "He's been the chair. Let's speak about it."
So one candidate approved the commissioners. The other chaired the body that oversaw them. D.C. residents watching this exchange learned something useful: both of these people had a hand on the lever, and neither pulled it in the right direction.
The shouting wasn't limited to the candidates. Attendees joined in, and the forum moderator struggled to regain control. The plea for order was memorable, if nothing else:
Everybody — we not going to do this in the house of the Lord, cause I will start cussing.
McDuffie momentarily stormed off stage during the exchange before returning to deliver one more line to the audience:
Do not fall for the banana in the tailpipe. It's about leadership. It's about results.
Leadership and results. Those are interesting words from a field of candidates who collectively presided over the very rate hike they're now running against.
The race to replace Mayor Muriel Bowser, who has held the office for ten years, heads to a primary on June 16 with a general election set for November 8. In a city where the Democratic primary effectively decides the outcome, this forum offered a preview of what voters can expect: politicians who spent years in power suddenly discovering that the consequences of their own governance make excellent campaign material.
This is the recurring pattern in cities where one party holds unchallenged control for decades. There is no external opposition to blame, so the incumbents turn on each other. The arguments become circular. You voted for the commissioners. You chaired the council. You were there. So were you. Meanwhile, residents absorb another monthly increase and watch their would-be leaders shout about it in a church.
D.C. residents facing higher gas bills don't need two Democrats arguing over which one of them failed to stop it. They need someone who would have stopped it in the first place. Nothing about Saturday's forum suggested that person was on the stage.
