Should the leaders of American cities who abandon their residents to rioters and looters and push for efforts to defund the police receive money from American taxpayers?
Should citizens in rural communities in Kansas, Oregon, or Florida pay for the bad policies and incompetent leaders in Seattle, Portland, and New York?
According to the feds, the answer is yes.
A new report from Open the Books has found that five major American cities wracked by violence and #defundthepolice efforts received nearly $15 billion from American taxpayers in 2019. Here are the cities:
- Portland, Oregon (Federal awards: $252.5 million | pop. 653,115) A family of four, on average, received $1,548 in federal subsidies ($387 per person).
- Seattle, Washington (Federal awards: $365.1 million | pop. 744,955) A family of four, on average, received $1,960 in federal subsidies ($490 per person).
- San Francisco, California (Federal awards: $516 million | pop. 883,305) A family of four, on average, received $2,337 in federal subsidies ($584 per person).
- Washington, D.C. (Federal awards: $3.3 billion | pop. 705,000) A family of four, on average, received the equivalent of $18,723 in federal subsidies ($4,680 per person).
- New York, New York (Federal awards: $5.6 billion | pop. 8.4 million) A family of four, on average, received the equivalent of $2,667 in federal subsidies ($667 per person).
The mayors and city councils of these cities shouldn't get a bail out from the rest of the country. We need to rein in federal spending like this, and a Convention of States can do just that.
An Article V Convention of States can impose fiscal restraints on Congress that prohibit this kind of politically-motivated waste. These amendments can put Congress back in its constitutional box and limit the types of things on which they can spend money. Amendments proposed at a Convention of States can also force Congress to balance its budget, cap spending, and limit taxation.
We the People are tired of paying for the mistakes of our elected officials. We want to take our lives in our own hands, and we can take the power for ourselves with an Article V Convention of States.
Sign the petition below to join the movement!
