DC Mayor Arrested at Budget Protest

Washington Mayor Vincent Gray and several city council members were among 41 people arrested at a Capitol Hill protest against the budget deal yesterday. Gray and his colleagues were charged with unlawful assembly for blocking passage on the street and were taken to a Capitol Police facility before being released late last night, Politico reports.

The mayor was among hundreds of people who gathered to protest the budget bill's new restrictions on DC, including a measure demanded by Republicans that bans the district from using its own funds on abortion services. "I’m tired of being a pawn in a political game,” Gray said, slamming federal lawmakers for agreeing to the deal without consulting the district. “All we want is to be able to spend our own money.”