John,
Imagine paying your taxes only to have Congress lock your money in a vault and hand your police department to Donald Trump. That is the reality for 700,000 residents of Washington, DC.
Trump’s federal police takeover is unprecedented and unlawful. The DC Home Rule Act allows limited federal use of DC police for specific emergencies, but no such emergency exists. Violent crime is down, yet Trump is staging checkpoints, deploying troops, and rewriting local policing policies to fit his authoritarian agenda.
At the same time, the House GOP is deliberately blocking DC from spending over $1 billion of its own tax dollars, plunging the city into a manufactured budget crisis.[1] That money should be keeping families housed, schools open, and neighborhoods safe. Instead, House Republicans are refusing to release the funds while capitulating to Trump’s political games.
Congress must end this lawless occupation. Rep. Jamie Raskin and other Democrats have introduced a resolution to restore DC’s home rule and stop Trump’s authoritarian seizure of power.[2] But they need public pressure to demand action now.
Click here to send a message to Congress demanding they stop Trump’s DC takeover and release the city’s $1 billion.
If Trump succeeds here, it sets a dangerous precedent. Any city that challenges him could face the same treatment, stripped of autonomy, denied funding, and put under military occupation.
Washingtonians are Americans. They pay federal taxes, fight in our wars, and contribute to our economy. Yet they are denied statehood, denied representation, and now denied access to their own tax dollars.
We cannot allow Congress to sit on its hands while Trump tramples democracy in our nation’s capital. This is about more than DC: it is about whether we still believe in self-government. Trump’s power grab must be stopped now.
Tell Congress to end Trump’s lawless takeover and release DC’s stolen $1 billion.
Together, we will stop the DC police takeover and return these taxpayer dollars to the people they belong to.
Pablo Willis
Communications Director
Americans for Tax Fairness Action Fund
[1] House Republicans Move to Put Their Stamp on D.C. as Budget Fix Languishes
[2] Democrats introduce joint resolution to end Trump’s ‘lawless’ DC takeover
-- David's email --
John,
Donald Trump is trying to run Washington, DC like one of his bankrupt casinos, seizing control, ignoring the law, and sticking working people with the bill.
Last week, Trump federalized DC’s police force under the false excuse of “rising crime.” Before Trump’s takeover, violent crime in DC had already fallen to a 30-year low.[1] This is not about safety. It is a full-on political power grab. He even deployed the National Guard—overruling DC’s mayor and council.
At the same time, House Republicans are blocking Washington from spending over $1 billion of its own tax revenue, money that DC taxpayers already paid to fund schools, healthcare, housing, and public safety.[2] Instead of releasing this money, Republicans are pushing bills to strip DC’s voting rights, overturn local policing reforms, and force cooperation with Trump’s anti-immigrant agenda.
Rep. Jamie Raskin and DC Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton have introduced legislation to block Trump’s illegal takeover and restore home rule.[3] But unless Congress acts now, Trump will keep trampling on the rights of 700,000 DC residents, Americans who pay taxes but are denied statehood and representation.
Tell Congress to stop Trump’s DC takeover and release $1 billion in stolen taxpayer funds.
Trump’s abuse of power in DC is about more than one city. If he can trample community control here, he will try it in Los Angeles, Chicago, or any community that stands in his way.
This is the same Donald Trump who promised billionaire donors another round of massive tax cuts while stripping resources from working families. Now he is treating DC’s residents as pawns in his political game, all while Republicans in Congress hijack the city’s budget.
Senator Schumer put it plainly: “If he (Trump) actually cared about the people of DC, he’d demand the House finally release the billion dollars of DC’s funding they’ve been sitting on for months.”[4] Instead, he is militarizing neighborhoods, sweeping homeless encampments, and blocking schools and clinics from getting the resources they need.
Washingtonians deserve the same rights as every other American. Congress must act immediately to block Trump’s unlawful takeover and restore DC’s stolen $1 billion.
Demand Congress stop Trump’s lawless DC takeover and release the funding now.
Thank you for standing up against Trump’s power grab and fighting to protect DC taxpayers.
David Kass
Executive Director
Americans for Tax Fairness Action Fund
[1] Democrats introduce bill to block Trump DC police takeover
[2] House Republicans Move to Put Their Stamp on D.C. as Budget Fix Languishes
[3] Democrats introduce joint resolution to end Trump’s ‘lawless’ DC takeover
[4] Senator Chuck Schumer Post on X
