While Americans struggled this summer with rising costs and shrinking access to health care under Donald Trump’s agenda, House Republicans spent August continuing sham investigations, targeting nonprofits, and enabling Trump’s authoritarian power grabs. As they return to Washington, the question remains: will they finally do their jobs or continue wasting taxpayer dollars on political theater?
Here Are Four Questions for Congressional Republicans on Their Wasted August:
- What will you tell constituents who can’t access disaster relief because you prioritized attacking nonprofits over ensuring Americans get emergency aid?
- If you support Trump’s military occupation of D.C., will you also support him sending troops to your own districts?
- Why are you enabling Trump to weaponize federal agencies against his critics and dismantle the institutional independence that safeguards our democracy?
- How do you justify the double standard of attacking ActBlue while completely ignoring systematic violations by Republican platform WinRed?
As a reminder, here’s a rundown of what House Republicans spent their summer focused on instead of helping their constituents:
WAR ON CIVIL SOCIETY: Putting Disaster Relief at Risk
- Trump’s DHS restricts critical aid groups, including the Salvation Army and Red Cross, from providing certain lifesaving disaster relief as hurricane season intensifies
- Republicans’ attacks on nonprofits threaten to leave vulnerable communities without assistance during natural disasters
- This latest assault on civil society organizations continues Republicans’ campaign to attack nonprofit organizations that Americans depend on
ENABLING AUTHORITARIANISM: Republicans Cheer Trump’s Power Grabs
- Trump deployed the National Guard in Washington D.C. against local officials’ wishes, despite now being officially rebuked by a federal judge regarding his illegal militarization of Los Angeles in June
- House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer threatened to drag D.C. Mayor Bowser and other local officials to hearings to prop up Trump’s false claims about a supposed “crime crisis”
- Trump’s Department of Justice sent FBI agents to raid the home of former National Security Advisor John Bolton, a sharp critic of the administration, in a brazen targeting of a political opponent
- Trump attempted to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, directly undermining central bank independence
SHAM INVESTIGATIONS: Republicans Ignore Real Violations While Attacking Democrats
- House GOP leaders refuse to investigate documented WinRed violations and foreign connections, despite formal demands
- Republicans continue baseless attack on Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue over allegations experts dismiss as “not serious”
- Comer’s committee wastes taxpayer resources investigating Wikipedia instead of addressing actual censorship being pushed by the Trump administration
- Republicans’ selective oversight exposes their unwillingness to police their own party’s shady behavior
###