Congress has a constitutional duty to provide oversight of the Executive Branch, and this role is one of my major priorities.

Donald Trump’s first term was a disaster for the country, and I helped lead a strong response to protect the American people from his greed and corruption, defend our democratic institutions, and hold his administration accountable. This included leading efforts that helped secure the removal of members of Trump’s cabinet, using public messaging to raise awareness of Trump and his cronies’ lawlessness and wrongdoing, and working tirelessly to help flip the House so that we could direct formal oversight efforts with the legal weight of congressional committee powers. I remain proud of my votes to impeach Donald Trump twice.

Since his return to office, Trump has been even worse. His renewed attack on federal employees and government agencies, driven by Elon Musk and “DOGE,” led to a mass purge of hundreds of thousands of federal workers and contractors, an economic disaster for our region and a moral disaster for our country and the world. Trump has sent federal agents into major cities to sow division and fear by harassing honest, law-abiding people, resulting in violent incidents and even murder. He signed the biggest health care cut in history to pay for tax cuts for the ultra-rich, enacted tariffs that raised Americans’ prices while alienating our allies, and engaged in illegal and unconstitutional attacks on sovereign countries without congressional authorization.  He has renewed his lie that the 2020 election was stolen and pardoned 1,600 criminals who participated in the violent attack on the Capitol on January 6th, 2021. He’s lined his pockets and the pockets of his family members with ill-gotten crypto money as his allies and donors get rich off of his administration’s policies.

I am doing all I can to oppose this would-be dictator and his lawless administration. I have joined legal efforts to fight Trump’s authoritarian takeover in court, many of which have been successful. I’ve fought his overreach via legislation to lower costs, protect Americans’ health care, and stop Trump’s draconian immigration enforcement. Because of my committee assignments and district, my legislative work has taken a particular focus on the federal workforce and on tariffs. 

I organized the first of many congressional actions at federal agencies to stand up for federal workers and oppose the illegal attacks on our agencies at USAID on February 3, 2025. I have led or participated in many since and joined people across the country standing up for freedom and justice in rallies like the No Kings rallies. I fought to raise awareness about the case of Dr. Badar Khan Suri and other academics illegally detained without charges by the Trump Administration simply for engaging in protected speech, and I was proud to welcome Dr. Suri back to Northern Virginia after his court-ordered release. I’ve conducted oversight in person, including visits at ICE detention centers in Virginia, after which I continued to press for accountability, humane conditions, and adherence to basic medical and safety standards.

I’ve also done my best to listen to my constituents and to help those hurt by Trump. I’ve held a job fair, financial resource and mental health resource fairs, a know your rights training for dealing with ICE, and other local events to help people fired or targeted by this administration. I’ve held town halls in person and by phone to hear from constituents on all of these topics, so that my actions can reflect your needs. Together with my Democratic colleagues in Congress and with all who value freedom, justice, and democracy, I am working every day to hold this administration accountable, protect the Constitution, and defend our most important values.