L.A. County Sheriff Responds Accordingly to AOC's Bizarro 'Smash and Grab' Denials

When discussions of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) come up in conservative circles, at least one if not two familiar themes invariably get mentioned.

The first one goes something like “AOC is dumber than a box of rocks/doesn’t know what the hell she’s doing.” The other one goes something like “even though her ideas are insane, AOC is smarter than we think and knows exactly what she’s saying/doing.”

While I lean towards the latter sentiment, one thing that’s for sure is what she said a few days ago in casting doubt on the wave of “smash and grab” looting instances plaguing certain parts of the country – with California on the receiving end of the brunt of them – were weapons-grade stupid.

“A lot of these allegations of organized retail theft are not actually panning out,” Ocasio-Cortez told The Washington Times.

“I believe it’s a Walgreens in California [that] cited it, but the data didn’t back it up,” she added.

As we documented extensively here, Walgreens, other retail industry leaders and Republican lawmakers pushed back on AOC’s claims, with Walgreens, in particular, noting that “organized retail crime is one of the top challenges” they’re dealing with. They also stated that the problem has “evolved beyond shoplifting and petty theft to the sale of stolen and counterfeit goods online.”

With all that in mind, we turn to what L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva had to say in response to AOC’s suggestion that the issue was being overblown.

Villanueva, a Democrat who is does not mince words and who frequently calls out the ridiculousness that is frequently on display in his own party – especially on the issues of funding and fighting crime, had the appropriate description of her tactic:

“In the words of John Adams, ‘Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence,’” Villanueva began. “No matter how badly certain politicians want to perform the Jedi mind trick to further their political narrative, the facts and evidence cannot be altered.”

Can’t really argue much with that, although I think it’s safe to say that AOC is not the type of person the Jedi would want to bring into The Force’s fold. Because she’d turn into an Anakin Skywalker real quick, if you catch my meaning.

Fortunately, Villanueva isn’t the only prominent left coast Democrat who hasn’t lost his marbles, though he’s one of precious few.

Last week, Oakland’s Democrat Mayor Libby Schaff made her most aggressive push to date in demanding the city council reverse course on their June vote to partially defund the police.

After Schaff, who was being interviewed by CNN, expressed horror over the murder of private security guard Kevin Nishita as he protected a news crew that was filing a report on a recent smash and grab robbery, she began talking about how the city desperately needed more police officers. She claimed that the city “appreciated” them but also suggested that “the defund rhetoric is challenging our ability to attract and retain recruits. And we know that that is not unique to Oakland.”

She also hinted that controversial bail reform measures supported by Democrats, which some have blamed in part for the horrific Waukesha, Wisconsin car plowing massacre that killed six, were among the things that should be reconsidered in an effort to combat what she called a “spike in violence.”

San Francisco’s Democrat Mayor London Breed, on the other hand, has a different kind of “solution” to the looting sprees, which as my RedState colleague Kira Davis reported revolves around “restricting parking and access to retail areas” and canceling vacations for police officers.

Many stores in San Francisco have also taken to either closing early, boarding up their windows, or both in response to the crime wave plaguing the city.

"Crime is down."

Union Square, San Francisco. November 26th, 2021 pic.twitter.com/16VrRkMKK8

— Kai Sparnas (@kaisparnas) November 27, 2021

Some of the most famously iconic cities in America are getting utterly ruined by Democrats. It’s beyond sad to witness, no matter what side of the aisle you sit on.