President Donald Trump said Monday he is deploying the National Guard across Washington, D.C., and taking over the city’s police department, declaring a public safety emergency despite the mayor noting crime is falling, according to the Associated Press.
Trump compared crime in the capital to that of Iraq, Brazil, and Colombia, saying Washington performed poorly. He also announced the removal of homeless encampments from “our beautiful, beautiful parks” and vowed, “We’re getting rid of the slums, too.”
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi will take control of the Metropolitan Police Department, Trump said, while criticizing potholes and graffiti as “embarrassing.”
The plan involves at least 500 federal law enforcement officers plus National Guard troops. More than 100 FBI agents, 40 ATF agents, and personnel from the DEA, ICE, and U.S. Marshals Service will join patrols. Trump invoked Section 740 of the D.C. Home Rule Act to authorize the Guard’s deployment.
Mayor Muriel Bowser questioned the move, suggesting more prosecutors and filled judicial vacancies would be a better use of federal resources. She acknowledged the Guard’s deployment is “the president’s call” but noted violent crime is down 26% compared to 2024. “Any comparison to a war-torn country is hyperbolic and false,” she said.
Trump posted Sunday about removing the homeless: “The Homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY… The Criminals… We’re going to put you in jail where you belong.”
The decision follows last week’s order for federal agencies to boost their presence in D.C. for seven days after the assault of Edward Coristine, a senior figure in the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Police arrested two 15-year-olds in the attempted carjacking.
Trump called D.C. “tents, squalor, filth, and Crime” and said, “This has to be the best run place in the country, not the worst.” While calling Bowser “a good person who has tried,” he suggested Congress might repeal the Home Rule Act of 1973 to return Washington to federal control, a step facing steep political resistance.
Bowser countered: “None of those conditions exist in our city right now. We are not experiencing a spike in crime. In fact, we’re watching our crime numbers go down.”
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