House GOP Roasted for Tweet Comparing Baltimore Crime to Fictional TV Show ‘The Wire’
FILE – Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, center, speaks during a news conference outside of the Baltimore City District Court after a shooting, Jan. 31, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough, File)
The official X/Twitter account for the Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee was ridiculed for using the TV show The Wire as an example of Baltimore crime.
On Thursday night, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) tweeted a photo of himself talking on the phone. Included in the tweet was the caption, “In Maryland, we’re fired up to defend American democracy and freedom.”
“I just spoke with more than 15,000 constituents in MD-08 on a community telephone town hall,” Raskin continued. “Thank you for joining in and hang tough everyone!”
Among the quote responses to the tweet was one from the House Judiciary GOP account.
“How’s the crime in Baltimore (D)?” the account tweeted. “Ever seen The Wire?”
The critically acclaimed HBO showed focused on the drug trade in Baltimore from the perspective of both the police and those involved in the trade. It debuted in 2002 and aired its series finale in 2008.
As Raskin pointed out in another response, the show was fictional.
“The Wire? Um, came out 23 years ago & was a fictional TV show, ie made-up!” he said. “Crime’s down in the real Baltimore. Homicide is terrible in Speaker Johnson’s Baton Rouge. Why don’t we work together to restore $800 million in DOJ local police & community security grants that DOGE cut?”
Countless other responses mocked the tweet by citing other works of fiction.
Although Baltimore’s still home to one of the highest crime rates in the country, it has come a long way since the airing of the show. According to data touted by Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, the city is in the midst of one of its safest periods in decades. At the time of writing, homicides for the year were at their lowest levels in over half a century.
