National guard begins deploying on DC streets after Trump police takeover
The Washington DC national guard began deploying on the city's streets on Tuesday night, as the city's mayor toughened her response to Donald Trump taking control of the city's police force.
The unusual federalization of law enforcement in the US capital began a day after the president ordered the troops' arrival, calling Washington DC a 'lawless' city, despite official crime statistics saying otherwise, a White House official confirmed.
Muriel Bowser, the Democratic mayor of Washington, hardened her stance on Tuesday night after treading a more diplomatic line earlier in the day. During a live town hall type event on social media on Tuesday night, she described the arrival of federalized national guard as an authoritarian push.
Bowser called on DC residents and voters to overcome Trump's move and urged them 'to protect our city, to protect our autonomy, to protect our home rule and get to the other side of this guy and make sure we elect a Democratic House so that we have a backstop to this authoritarian push'.
Defense officials had earlier said a small number of the roughly 800 guard members planned for the mission had already been mobilized by Tuesday afternoon, with more expected to arrive in the coming days.
About 850 officers and agents took part in a 'massive law enforcement surge' across Washington DC on Monday night and made nearly two dozen arrests, the White House has said. The violent crime rate in Washington DC is at a 30-year low.
Press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Tuesday: 'As part of the president's massive law enforcement surge, last night approximately 850 officers and agents were surged across the city. They made a total of 23 arrests, including multiple other contacts.'
The arrests consisted of homicide, firearms offences, possession with intent to distribute narcotics, fare evasion, lewd acts and stalking, Leavitt added. 'A total of six illegal handguns were seized off of District of Columbia's streets as part of last night's effort.'
Leavitt added: 'This is only the beginning. Over the course of the next month, the Trump administration will relentlessly pursue and arrest every violent criminal in the district who breaks the law, undermines public safety and endangers law-abiding Americans.'
The press secretary also told reporters that homeless people have the option to be taken to a homeless shelter and offered addiction and mental health services. 'If they refuse, they will be susceptible to fines or to jail time. These are pre-existing laws that are already on the books. They have not been enforced.'
Trump's intervention has been widely condemned as an authoritarian power grab that undermines the autonomy of Washington's DC local government and seeks to distract attention from political problems such as the Jeffrey Epstein files.
Bowser had earlier pledged to work 'side by side' with the federal government as national guard troops arrived at their headquarters in the capital.
Speaking after a meeting with the attorney general, Pam Bondi, at the justice department, Bowser told reporters: 'You will see the Metropolitan police department (MPD) working side by side with our federal partners in order to enforce the effort that we need around the city.'
On Tuesday night she pushed back harder against Trump's couching of Washington DC as a city afflicted with crime and homelessness to the point that it is a crisis requiring federal intervention.
Bowser said the issue of homeless people on some DC streets 'triggers something' in Trump 'that has him believing that our very beautiful city is dirty, which it is not'.
She went on, referring to the population of the city, which itself is small despite supporting a massive federal workforce in the region: 'We are not 700,000 scumbags and punks.'
Bowser has up to now cultivated a delicate working relationship with Trump since his return to power in January, avoiding direct confrontations when possible.
She said after the meeting with Bondi: 'What I'm focused on is the federal surge and how to make the most of the additional officer support that we have. We have the best in the business at MPD and chief Pamela Smith to lead that effort and to make sure that the men and women who are coming from federal law enforcement are being well used and that, if there is national guard here, that they're being well used and all in an effort to drive down crime.'
Other Democratic mayors across the country had warned Trump against expanding his law and order power grab in other major cities.
Trump told reporters on Monday: 'We have other cities also that are bad,' citing the Democratic strongholds of Chicago, Los Angeles and New York. 'And then, of course, you have Baltimore and Oakland. You don't even mention them any more, they're so far gone.'
Related: 'Hyperbolic and false': Trump's portrayal of crime in Washington DC has little to do with facts
Stephen Miller, an influential White House deputy chief of staff, stepped up the rhetoric on Tuesday, tweeting without evidence: 'Crime stats in big blue cities are fake. The real rates of crime, chaos & dysfunction are orders of magnitude higher. Everyone who lives in these areas knows this. They program their entire lives around it. Democrats are trying to unravel civilization. Pres Trump will save it.'
All five cities named by Trump are run by Black mayors. Most were outspoken in denouncing the president's move. Brandon Johnson, Chicago's mayor, said in a statement: 'Sending in the national guard would only serve to destabilize our city and undermine our public safety efforts.'
Brandon Scott, the mayor of Baltimore, said: 'When it comes to public safety in Baltimore, he should turn off the rightwing propaganda and look at the facts. Baltimore is the safest it's been in over 50 years.'
Barbara Lee, the mayor of Oakland, wrote on X: 'President Trump's characterization of Oakland is wrong and based in fear-mongering in an attempt to score cheap political points.'
Karen Bass, the mayor of Los Angeles, where troops were sent earlier this month in a crackdown on protests, posted: 'Another experiment by the Administration, another power grab from local government. This is performative. This is a stunt. It always has been and always will be.'
Trump took command of the Washington DC police department and deployed the national guard under laws and constitutional powers that give the federal government more sway over the nation's capital than other cities. But Democrats raised concerns that Washington DC could be a blueprint for similar strong-arm tactics elsewhere.
California's governor, Gavin Newsom, warned that Trump 'will gaslight his way into militarising any city he wants in America'.
JB Pritzker, the governor of Illinois, said the president 'has absolutely no right and no legal ability to send troops into the city of Chicago, and so I reject that notion'.
Coral Murphy Marcos and Joanna Walters contributed reporting
Solve the daily Crossword
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
23 minutes ago
- New York Post
Former AG Bill Barr shared ‘new' details on Jeffrey Epstein's prosecution, death in House deposition: GOP chairman
WASHINGTON — Former Attorney General Bill Barr shared 'new' details about the sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein — and his death in federal custody before heading to trial — during a deposition with the House Oversight Committee on Monday, according to the panel's chairman. Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) divulged to reporters that Barr's testimony to House lawmakers and committee staff had revealed 'a lot' on odd circumstances surrounding Epstein's federal prosecution and suicide. 'We asked a lot of questions about the, you know, the suicide,' Comer said, noting the 'general consensus' among Barr, FBI Director Kash Patel, independent medical experts and federal investigations is that the disgraced financier took his own life in a Manhattan lockup on Aug. 10, 2019. 5 Former Attorney General Bill Barr shared 'new' details about the sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein — and his death in federal custody before heading to trial — during a deposition with the House Oversight Committee on Monday. AP The Oversight chairman added that he personally had 'no idea' whether Epstein, 66, killed himself. 'There were blind spots in the in the cameras,' Comer said. 'It's unfortunate … there weren't people in there watching because this is such a high-profile case. … I'm very disappointed in the security. 'We've learned some new things pertaining to different aspects of it, but we've got a lot of people to depose, and we'll release all the transcripts once we get through,' he added. 5 Oversight Chairman James Comer added that he personally had 'no idea' whether Epstein, 66, killed himself. AP Barr's testimony also affirmed an FBI-DOJ assessment provided in a memo last month on the absence of any so-called 'client list' that Epstein allegedly kept of rich and powerful associates potentially implicated in his sickening crimes. The former AG also denied having ever discussed the client list with Trump and suggested that if the 45th president had been involved in Epstein's trafficking network, former President Joe Biden's Justice Department would've leaked any association. In addition to Barr, Attorney General Pam Bondi was subpoenaed for records related to the government's prosecutions of Epstein, his now-convicted accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell and a non-prosecution agreement stemming from an earlier state case against the disgraced financier in the mid-2000s. 5 'There were blind spots in the in the cameras,' Comer said. 'It's unfortunate … there weren't people in there watching because this is such a high-profile case. … I'm very disappointed in the security.' CBS 60 MINUTES That agreement was overseen by then-Miami US Attorney Alex Acosta, later Trump's Labor secretary during his first administration, and Democratic lawmakers said that they'd like to issue him a subpoena as well. Reps. Suhas Subramanyam (D-Va.) and Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) told reporters that the Oversight panel should seek testimony from Acosta on Epstein's prosecution. 'We have more questions now than we did going in — and we want more answers and more people to talk to,' said Subramanyam. 5 Asked about their newfound focus on Epstein after nearly five years of silence, the Dems noted that Trump had campaigned on the issue of releasing information on the deceased sex criminal to the public. Department of Justice Barr was one of nearly a dozen former federal officials issued a subpoena by the Oversight panel — including former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, attorneys general stretching from Biden's term to the administration of George W. Bush and two former FBI directors. Asked about their newfound focus on Epstein after nearly five years of silence, the Dems noted that Trump had campaigned on the issue of releasing information on the deceased sex criminal to the public. 'Listen, this is a promise, I will tell you, that was not made by Kamala Harris. It's not a promise that was made by Joe Biden. This was a promise that was made by Donald Trump,' Crockett said. 5 'Listen, this is a promise, I will tell you, that was not made by Kamala Harris. It's not a promise that was made by Joe Biden. This was a promise that was made by Donald Trump,' Crockett said. AP 'We'll bring in everyone that we think can add information to the investigation,' added Comer. 'This is a serious investigation. This is a sincere investigation. I hope this will be a bipartisan investigation. I would encourage my Democrat colleagues not to politicize this.'
Chicago Tribune
23 minutes ago
- Chicago Tribune
Afternoon Briefing: Lake Zurich priest placed on leave for the third time
Good afternoon, Chicago. Texas House Democrats began returning to their state today after spending two weeks in the Chicago area and other parts of the country to prevent the Republican majority in their legislature from passing a new gerrymandered congressional map aimed at eliminating five Democratic seats. Yesterday, Texas state Rep. James Talarico received almost a familiar welcome as he delivered a rare politician-led sermon to the congregation at the historic Trinity United Church of Christ on the South Side, once the home church for Barack Obama. Considered a rising political star even before he joined his fellow Democrats in the quorum-breaking walkout, Talarico spoke to hundreds of congregants in both religious and political terms, something the lawmaker and seminary student doesn't shy from doing. Here's what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices. Subscribe to more newsletters | Asking Eric | Horoscopes | Puzzles & Games | Today in History There is another allegation that in the mid-1990s, during his years on staff at Maryville Academy, the Rev. David Ryan sexually abused a child. Read more here. More top news stories: Eleanor Gorski, CEO of the Chicago Architecture Center, said these hotels in historic buildings are attractive because they are often in a part of town that is fully built out, easily accessible by public transportation and near other amenities. Read more here. More top business stories: It was the most points the Bears have scored in an exhibition game since 1999 and just the second preseason shutout by the defense this century, with the other coming in the 2015 finale (a 24-0 win over the Cleveland Browns). Read more here. More top sports stories: In town recently to promote his new movie 'Nobody 2,' Bob Odenkirk, who produced and stars in the film, talked about his dramatic turn to grittier roles, first in FX's 'Fargo' series and then as the scheming Saul Goodman in 'Breaking Bad' and 'Better Call Saul.' Read more here. More top Eat. Watch. Do. stories: Island communities off the coast of North Carolina are bracing for flooding ahead of the year's first Atlantic hurricane, Hurricane Erin. Read more here. More top stories from around the world:
The Hill
23 minutes ago
- The Hill
House Democrat: DC ‘not the safest place in the world'
Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.) said Sunday that Washington, D.C., is 'not the safest place in the world' amid President Trump's crackdown on crime in the District and pushback from Democrats over the president's actions. 'Both of my children live in Washington, D.C. You know it's not — it's not the safest place in the world,' Smith told NewsNation's Chris Stirewalt on 'The Hill Sunday.' 'And also some of the policies the Democrats advanced around crime over the course of the last 10 or 15 years very clearly did not work. There was not enough transparency and not enough accountability,' he added. Last week, Trump announced he was taking federal control of D.C.'s police department and deploying the National Guard in the city to combat crime. Since then, he has received heavy pushback on his law enforcement moves from Democrats and District residents. On Monday, Mississippi became the fourth Republican -led state to unveil plans to dispatch National Guard troops to D.C. to boost Trump's crackdown on crime in the District. 'I've approved the deployment of approximately 200 Mississippi National Guard Soldiers to Washington, D.C., to support President Trump's effort to return law and order to our nation's capital,' Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves (R) said on the social platform X. Smith said last Tuesday it was 'pretty clear' Trump ''wants his own domestic police force.' 'Look, this president is trampling on basic freedoms of the American people to a degree we — I don't think we've ever seen,' Smith said on CNN. 'You see that with what the ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] agents are doing, in terms of picking people up off the streets with no evidence, no due process, locking people up.' 'This is happening all across the country,' the Evergreen State Democrat added. 'Look, it's pretty clear the president wants his own domestic police force, and step by step, he's trying to create it, and we should be deeply alarmed by that, regardless of how you feel about crime in Washington, D.C., or any other city.'
