President Donald Trump signed a memorandum late Wednesday ordering a review of federal funds to certain state and local governments that “are permitting anarchy, violence, and destruction in American cities.”
The president’s memo orders all federal executive departments and agencies to submit a report to the director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) detailing all federal funds that have been provided to Seattle, Portland, New York City, Washington, “or any components or instrumentalities of the foregoing jurisdictions.”
Within 14 days of the order, OMB Director Russ Vought must issue guidance to the federal agencies to submit their reports.
The order notes that anarchy has taken over several states and cities across the nation over the past few months, adding that a number of state and local governments have “contributed to the violence and destruction in their jurisdictions by failing to enforce the law, disempowering and significantly defunding their police departments, and refusing to accept offers of Federal law enforcement assistance.”
The memo adds that violence and destruction have as a result “continued unabated.”
“My Administration will not allow Federal tax dollars to fund cities that allow themselves to deteriorate into lawless zones,” the president stated in the memo. “To ensure that Federal funds are neither unduly wasted nor spent in a manner that directly violates our Government’s promise to protect life, liberty, and property, it is imperative that the Federal Government review the use of Federal funds by jurisdictions that permit anarchy, violence, and destruction in America’s cities.
“It is also critical to ensure that Federal grants are used effectively, to safeguard taxpayer dollars entrusted to the Federal Government for the benefit of the American people.”
The order also said that Vought must, within 30 days of the order, issue guidance to federal agency heads on “restricting eligibility of or otherwise disfavoring ... anarchist jurisdictions in the receipt of Federal grants.”
It also directs Attorney General William Barr, alongside Chad Wolf, the acting Secretary of Homeland Security, and Vought, to publish on the website of the Justice Department a list of “anarchist jurisdictions,” described as “[s]tate and local jurisdictions that have permitted violence and the destruction of property to persist and have refused to undertake reasonable measures to counteract these criminal activities.”
Protests have flared across the United States since the end of May, and while many protests have been peaceful, others have turned violent. Americans across the nation have seen their businesses destroyed, looted, and set on fire by anarchists and rioters.
“America needs creation, not destruction; cooperation, not contempt; security, not anarchy; healing, not hatred; justice, not chaos,“ Trump said in a statement. ”This is our mission, and we will succeed.”
Four Cities
Trump noted four “anarchist jurisdictions” in his order: Seattle, Portland, New York City, and Washington.“But such failed leadership continues to harm the people of Seattle as, in recent weeks, rioters have engaged in violence and destruction of property across Seattle, resulting in at least 59 police officers being injured and multiple businesses and vehicles vandalized,” the president wrote.
“I have offered to provide Federal law enforcement assistance, but both Mayor de Blasio and Governor Andrew Cuomo have rejected my offer,” he said in the order.
In a response late Wednesday, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo accused Trump of having “actively sought to punish NYC since day one.”
“Instead of these foolish stunts he ought to be focused on getting our country out of the COVID crisis,” he added.
