Sen. Van Hollen: If You Wanted to See an Emergency in D.C., That Was Back on January 6, 2021

RUSH TRANSCRIPT:
RADDATZ: “And our thanks to mola. I’m joined now by senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland working with D.C. Officials to challenge the Trump Administration’s takeover. Good morning to you, senator. Let’s go back to the additional National Guard that is being sent in here, 750 from Republican-lead states. What’s your reaction to that?”

VAN HOLLEN: “Well, Martha, all of this is a total abuse of power. It’s a manufactured emergency. If you wanted to see an emergency in Washington, D.C., that was back on January 6, 2021, when President Trump did nothing to deploy the National Guard on time. Here Washington, D.C., can do more to reduce violent crime as we can across the country, but, as you pointed out, crime in D.C. Is at a 30-year low and on a downward trajectory, so this is all an opportunity for Donald Trump to play dictator in Washington, D.C. Instead, he should be releasing, along with the House Republicans, the $1 billion — a billion dollars in money that belongs to the people of D.C. That they’re holding that D.C. Could use to hire more police.”

RADDATZ: “Well, let’s talk about that. You call it this power grab, the move of a dictator, but the way the law is written, it appears he has the legal authority and mayor bowser conceded that. So what is the abuse of power here?”

VAN HOLLEN: “The abuse of power is claiming this is an emergency, and everybody who is watching what happens knows that this is not an emergency in Washington, D.C., so he is using this technical provision in the law. I would argue clearly he’s abusing it to manufacture this emergency and now he has 30 days in which he can act. At that time, of course, in order to act he needs Congress to extend it.”