A story about three trees, an angry “community,” and power in Washington, D.C. August 8, 2023, 7 AM ET “It’s almost like the government’s imposing its will on its residents,” Trayon White, the D.C. councilmember for Ward 8, said at the council’s June 6 legislative meeting. He wasn’t talking about a proposed highway, a subway station, a power plant, or—perish the thought—an apartment building.