Here is a short version that sticks to what we can prove and lets the reader draw the political conclusion.
Whitmire Blamed the Judges When Crime Was High
John Whitmire’s criticism of Harris County judges did not begin after he became Houston mayor.
In January 2022, while violent crime and bail were becoming major political issues in Harris County, then-State Sen. Whitmire confronted misdemeanor judges at a public meeting. He told them they could not simply say nothing could be done and argued that the courts played a part in the county’s growing crime problem. (Fox 26 Houston)
A few months later, Whitmire declared, “It’s not safe on the streets of Houston,” while demanding changes to the bail system. (Fox 26 Houston)
That same year, Republicans made crime, bail, and Democratic judges one of their principal campaign issues. Republican judicial candidates argued that Democratic judges were setting bonds too low and helping fuel violent crime. (Houston Chronicle)
Whitmire, a Democrat, was therefore using much of the same crime-and-bail language Republicans were using against Democratic judges.
My opinion: Whitmire was preparing for his run for Mayor of Houston and pandering to the Republicans, who supported him in 2024.