Quick To-Dos by 5 pm for Democracy & D.C.

Sign On to the Letter to Meet with Interim U.S. Attorney Ed Martin; RSVP for the March 15 Meeting with D.C.'s Attorney General; A Quick Overview of Hot Button Issues

Update: The Office of the D.C. Attorney General asked for an RSVP head-count for our meeting next Saturday, March 15, with D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb.

• Details: Saturday, March 15, at the Southwest Library (900 Wesley Place SW) starting at 1:30 p.m. D.C.’s Attorney General, Brian Schwalb, will speak and answer our questions. I will record it, but I encourage you to come in person.

• RSVP here. Please do this by 5 pm today (3/7), if possible.

• If you have a question for the Attorney General, please write it here.

• Here is the letter to Schwalb asking for a meeting, outlining topics to discuss.

• Concerns? Questions? Email Elissa.

Next Update: I am sending the letter requesting a meeting with Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Ed Martin at 5 pm today. Please sign it if you are concerned about Martin’s lack of prosecutorial experience, his legal ethics, his actions as U.S. Attorney so far, his confirmation in the U.S. Senate, or if you just want to hear him make the case why he is qualified and eager to do this job.

• You can read about Martin in Tuesday’s email. Since Tuesday, Martin has made headlines summarized below, and given that many of you have cancelled your Washington Post subscriptions, I have provided gift article links.

• Eight Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee, led by Sen. Dick Durbin, filed an ethics complaint against Martin with the D.C. Bar. “Martin has abused his position in several ways,” the committee wrote to the Office of Disciplinary Counsel. The deets: Martin dismissed charges against a Jan. 6 rioter he represented prior to taking office; in social media, Martin vowed to “pursue any and all legal action” against anyone who impedes Elon Musk and DOGE; Martin wrote in another post “Save your receipts, Smith and Covington,” referring to special counsel Jack Smith and the law firm representing him; and Martin launched “Operation Whirlwind,” which launched investigations into Democratic lawmakers who made statements critical of other branches of government.

• Martin also sent a letter to Georgetown University Law School demanding the school end all diversity, equity, and inclusion practices in order for him to hire the school’s graduates. Georgetown Law Dean William Treanor responded in a letter that the request violates the Constitution, infringing on the Jesuit institution’s right to determine a curriculum appropriate for its students.

• Thanks to Joe, Michael, and others who sent additional articles on Martin here and here.

Final Update: D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser has learned that her “fly under the radar” appeasement strategy will not placate Trump, at least when it comes to certain hot button issues in which they clashed in his previous term. We all appreciate the Mayor’s dilemma: Given the city’s lack of statehood and limited local autonomy, Bowser cannot take more strident positions challenging Trump and the Republican Congress without guaranteed backlash that could further limit or eliminate D.C. Home Rule.

Yet Bowser’s strategy and the apparent strategy of Chairman Mendelson and most council members does not have to be the blueprint of action for the 700,000 residents of D.C. This Friday email is in the short, brevity style so we’ll only introduce some topics of interest. Next week, you’ll be surveyed on how much you want these emails to delve into these and other policies.

• Immigration: Bowser was not one of four Democratic mayors asked to testify before Congress on their sanctuary city policies earlier this week, but this morning Axios reports that D.C.’s sanctuary city page has been removed from the city’s web site. Bowser has made public remarks in which she now says the term is “misleading.” The D.C. Council unanimously approved sanctuary city legislation in 2020 ,and Bowser signed it.

• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: In social media and letters from the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Trump administration has instructed Bowser to erase Black Lives Matter from 16th Street, known as Black Lives Matter Plaza. Bowser has indicated she will comply.

• Street Homelessness in D.C.: As previewed in our last email, Trump is focused on street homelessness, particularly the tents seen out his motorcade’s window. I think many of us are concerned about residents living on the street as well. It is a local D.C. issue how whether we simply move these residents out of Trump’s view, or we successfully move them into housing. D.C.’s landlord community has vocally complained that the vouchers used for this, permanent supportive housing, have not come with the robust support such as social services and monitoring that would make the program successful.

• Policing in DC, including on Metrorail and Metrobus: U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has made demands again about Black Lives Matter Plaza without specifically saying it, as well as statements about safety on D.C.’s public transportation systems.

• Education: Project 2025 was prescriptive about one public policy in D.C., private school vouchers: “The D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program, which provides vouchers to low-income children living in the nation’s capital—appropriate as D.C. is under the jurisdiction of Congress—should be expanded into a universal program, formula-funded, and moved to the Department of Health and Human Services.” Expect that Congress will impose an increase in funding and make that contingent on funding to traditional public schools and charter schools.

Actions for You to Help Our Country

Call Congress
Phone calling is effective, because it is hard to ignore. If you want more explanation, 5 calls spells it out and provides phone numbers for you. Every day, the Trump administration creates another good issue for you to talk about.

Attend an Event
Today, Friday, March 7: Stand Up for Science (https://standupforscience2025.org)

Tonight: Civil Rights, Civil Liberties, and the Rule of Law, A Community Teach-In at Politics & Prose

Saturday: A Solidarity Bike Ride for Federal Workers and Public Services

Actions for You to Help D.C.

• Sign On to Our Statement of D.C. Values

• Join Our Meeting with D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb on Saturday, March 15, at 1:30 p.m. at the Southwest Library. RSVP here.

• Sign On to the Letter Requesting a Meeting With Interim U.S. Attorney Ed Martin

Actions to Help Your Neighbors, Friends, Family, and You

• Call/Text/Email Your Friends Who Are Federal Workers and Contractors
  This is a frightening time for all of us, and especially for federal government workers and contractors who have lost their jobs. As well, many feds who are still employed fear for the future, such as Michael, who told me he wonders if today will be the day he’ll be asked do something unethical and have to decide whether to resign. Reach out to your friends in this position. Just showing you are there for them is enough.

• DC, as well as Maryland and Virginia, have resource websites for fired federal workers

  Update: DC has enhanced its page for federal workers! It is still pretty bare bones, but it is here.

  Maryland’s page is here.

  Virginia’s is here.

Final, final note: A big thanks to Gwendolyn, who took the time to inform her Tenleytown neighbors about this Substack and encouraged many people to subscribe! If you find these emails helpful and think your friends, family, neighbors would be interested in reading it, I encourage you to spread the word like Gwendolyn!