D.C. is particularly vulnerable to the Trump administration’s actions because the District isn’t a state, and some of the president’s actions either targeted D.C. or impact D.C. uniquely. But a threat the president repeated on the campaign trail hasn’t happened, at least not yet: taking control of D.C. away from the mayor.
That continues to be a constant threat hanging over the District like a black cloud.
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WATCH HEREMayor Muriel Bowser has said publicly that she feels the need to temper her public criticism of President Donald Trump because of those threats to take control of the city. When asked about Trump’s first 100 days on Wednesday, the mayor paused before answering.
“I don't want to make this about politics; I'm going to stick to the dollars and cents,” she said. “Here are the dollars and cents. We came into 2025. We had a slowing economy affected primarily by remote work, but we didn't have negative revenue projections. In 2025, we have negative revenue projections. In 2024, we have one of the rating agencies have us at Aaa. In 2025, we've been downgraded.
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SIGN UP “So those are just two points. Because of actions that have nothing to do with us — because of federal job loss and federal interference, our economics, our dollars and cents, have been impacted,” Bowser said.
Bowser went on to talk about proposed cuts to Medicaid.
“I happen to think it's one of the most cruel things to take insurance away when people have had it,” she said.
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“Children's Hospital in Washington, D.C., could severely limit their capacity,” Bowser said. “This is a premier children's hospital, not just for D.C., not just for the nation, but globally.”
Other actions by the the Trump administration that have had a direct impact on D.C. include:
- Ordering federal workers back to work in person,
- The release and pardon of the Jan. 6 defendants,
- Pardoning the two D.C. police officers convicted in the murder of Karon Hylton Brown,
- The purging of federal workers and closing of federal agencies,
- The executive order on crime and homelessness and creation of the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force,
- And the removal of Black Lives Matter Plaza.
And there’s the $1 billion budget cut imposed by the Republican Congress.
“This DOGE economy — is what I called it — it slowed us, it's causing us to have to make very difficult decisions about programs and services that have helped us become a world-class city,” Bowser said.
