On Monday, Donald Trump federalized the police department in Washington, D.C.,
and announced that he will deploy at least 800 National Guard troops on the
streets of our nation’s capital.

Among the many moves the Trump regime has made toward dismantling democracy in
America, this is one of the most alarming — throughout history, authoritarians
have taken over capital cities as a way to suppress dissent and solidify their
power.

Trump cited crime and homelessness as the pretense for his armed takeover of
D.C.

* Never mind that violent crime in D.C. is lower than it has been in decades.
There *is* an epidemic of crime in America — corporate crime — which the
Trump administration is making far worse by not investigating or prosecuting
even flagrant and repeat offenders.

* Never mind that the Trump administration has been actively attacking federal
programs that address homelessness, unemployment, addiction, and poverty —
aggravating those interrelated problems, and not just in D.C. but all across
the country.

* This seems like a good time to remember that residents of Washington, D.C. —
a majority of whom are people of color — are politically stranded. We have
been denied the basic right of statehood. We have no governor, no senators,
and no vote in the House of Representatives.

A message for Donald Trump: [[link removed]]

Like so many tyrants before you throughout human history — men (always men) who
know deep down that their ideas are noxious and unpopular — you are resorting to
brute force. But the American people will not stand by while you take over our
cities under blatantly false pretenses to stroke your own cracked ego and to
keep yourself in power. We will not be intimidated. We will stand up to you
today, tomorrow, and for as long as it takes.
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For justice,

- Lisa Gilbert & Robert Weissman, Co-Presidents of Public Citizen


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