Washington DC takeover: Police Chief Pamela Smith says Trump's move ‘dangerous' threat to law and order
The police chief's statement came in a court filing as Washington seeks to block the federal takeover of its police department in court.
Washington's top legal official is seeking an emergency restraining order on the US Attorney General Pam Bondi's order to remove the Metropolitan Police Chief. District of Columbia Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues the police takeover is illegal and threatens to 'wreak operational havoc.'
'The Bondi Order violates the Administrative Procedure Act because it is contrary to law, in excess of the Agency Defendants' statutory authority, arbitrary and capricious, an abuse of discretion, and otherwise not in accordance with the law,' the court filing said.
'Defendants' actions also exceed their authority under the DC Home Rule Act and violate the separation of powers, Take Care Clause, and District Clause of the Constitution,' it said further.
On Thursday, Attorney General Bondi designated Terry Cole, the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration, as 'Emergency Police Commissioner,' effectively handing over all the powers and duties vested in the Metropolitan Police Chief to him. It also left the role of the current chief, Smith, who works for the mayor, unclear.
Earlier, on Thursday, Police Chief Smith had told MPD officers to share information with immigration agencies regarding people not in custody, such as someone involved in a traffic stop or checkpoint.
Washington has been in chaos ever since Monday, when President Trump signed an executive order requiring the city's mayor to give temporary control of the Metropolitan Police Department to the federal government.
On Thursday, the Pentagon stated that all 800 National Guard troops who were ordered to Washington to aid law enforcement personnel have been mobilised.
'As of today, all 800 Army and Air National Guardsmen are mobilised… as part of Joint Task Force DC, and they are now here in our capital,' Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson told journalists.
According to the Pentagon, the National Guard will not have the power to arrest anyone, but can still carry weapons and detain people temporarily.
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Indian Express
5 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Alaska summit: Putin hoodwinks Trump, yet again
Russian President Vladimir Putin had a broad smile on his face when the two leaders appeared before cameras. And well he might: He bamboozled his American counterpart — as anyone observing their relationship over the past two decades knew he would. Putin scored a victory the moment his feet touched American soil: With a warrant outstanding from the International Criminal Court, he can't travel to 124 of the 193 UN member nations without risking arrest. By inviting him to the US and literally rolling out a red carpet for him, Trump granted Putin a level of legitimacy denied to him by two-thirds of the world. The good news from the summit is that no deal was announced: Any such 'agreement' would simply have been another case of two foreign powers divvying up land over which they had no rightful claim, against the wishes of people who resided there. But lack of such a document is cold comfort for the Ukrainians: Trump had preemptively surrendered to Putin's most important conditions long before reaching Alaska. Barely three weeks into his second term, Trump granted Putin's greatest demand: Denial to Ukraine of the possibility of joining NATO. After the dissolution of the USSR, 14 European nations, which had been under de facto Soviet control, joined the world's most powerful military alliance, and Russia hasn't dared to invade any of them since. Ukraine was never part of NATO — and Putin has explicitly demanded that it never be offered membership. That might have been part of a deal ending the war: Russia might give up all (or at least some) of the Ukrainian territory it has seized, and in return, Ukraine might agree to set aside hopes of joining NATO. But Trump offered that up proactively, without getting anything in return: On February 12, his Secretary of Defence said, 'The United States does not believe that NATO membership for Ukraine is a realistic outcome of a negotiated settlement.' One rule of negotiations is to avoid tossing away one's most valuable chip before sitting down at the table. A second key Russian demand was an end to US military aid for Ukraine, and Trump capitulated on that as well. Under President Joe Biden, the US provided more aid to Ukraine than any other nation did: 175 billion dollars' worth, the lion's share of which was military-related. Without this aid, Ukraine might not have been able to withstand the full impact of Putin's assault. In March, Trump cut off military aid cold, then played a back-and-forth game for months. In July, he permitted European nations to buy US armaments (to the financial benefit of American military contractors) and donate the weapons to Ukraine. That's somewhat better than a complete arms embargo — but nowhere near the support necessary to hold Russia off for long. While running for his current term, Trump often vowed that he'd end the Ukraine war in 24 hours. When the Alaska summit began, he'd been in office for nearly 5,000 hours; it ended with him unable to achieve a ceasefire, let alone a permanent end to the conflict. This all must come as a shock to the citizens of India. Just two weeks ago, Trump walloped them with the highest tariff rate of any nation on Earth: 25 per cent across the board, and an additional 25 per cent as punishment for buying oil from Russia. 'They don't care how many people in Ukraine are being killed by the Russian War Machine,' he said, in purported explanation of his action. 'Because of this, I will be substantially raising the tariff paid by India to the USA.' A war machine whose commander he welcomed warmly, and then gave his tacit blessing to carry right on? What, Indians may ask, does Trump even want? If he's trying to stop the war in Ukraine, why doesn't he crack down on the nation that's actually causing it? Why strong-arm a friend and partner like India as a roundabout way to (maybe) put some indirect pressure on Russia, while putting no pressure whatsoever on Russia itself? While India labours under a 50 per cent tariff, the rate imposed on Russia is half that (perhaps even less — it's impossible to tell for sure). What does it all mean? Trump's goal here is simple: He's trying to bully his way into a Nobel Peace Prize. Reportedly, he even called up the Prime Minister of Norway (whose nation administers the award), likely to demand he knuckle under. That isn't how Mother Teresa, the Dalai Lama, Martin Luther King Jr, or Nelson Mandela got their wreaths. Trump believes that if he can slap his name on as many bogus peace treaties as possible, he'll be able to intimidate the committee in Oslo — hence his claim to have brokered a May ceasefire between India and Pakistan, which India has made clear was arranged without his interference. Where are we left after a whirlwind summit that achieved absolutely nothing? Exactly where we were beforehand, but with a few illusions stripped away. The first illusion was that Putin had any interest in ending his invasion of Ukraine with a deal rather than a no-terms surrender. The second was that Trump had any intention of stopping him. The writer is author of Arrow of the Blue-Skinned God: Tracing the Ramayana Through India and Mullahs on the Mainframe: Islam and Modernity Among the Daudi Bohras
Time of India
13 minutes ago
- Time of India
For Ukraine, the Alaska summit was a complete disappointment
Vladimir Putin (left) Donald Trump (AP) During Saturday night, many Ukrainians stayed up and anxiously waited for news from the Alaska summit between US President Donald Trump and Russia's head of state Vladimir Putin. For some, there was hope the talks could lead to some sort of end of Russia's war against Ukraine. Many Ukrainians though feared the price for this might be territorial concessions Kyiv would be pressured into making. But it soon became clear that the summit in Alaska had brought no fundamental changes. No deal, just a photo op "There were no concrete results for Ukraine," Oleksandr Kraiev of the Ukrainian Prism think tank told DW. "Thank God nothing was signed and no radical decisions were made," the North America expert said. "The summit was an extremely successful information operation for Russia. The war criminal Putin came to the US and shook hands with the leader of the free world." According to Kraiev, apart from "Trump's deference toward Putin, there were no final answers to the most important questions." He believes that Putin dealt with Trump "with surgical precision" and told him everything Trump wanted to hear. This way, Putin got everything he wanted out of the summit. According to Ivan Us from Ukraine's center for foreign policy of the national institute for strategic studies, the Russian president never wanted the summit to lead to an end to the war. Instead, Putin's goal was to legitimize himself and end his international isolation. "For Putin, having a joint photo with Trump was the goal of this summit. To show in Russia that the isolation is over, that there won't be new sanctions, and that everything is fine, so that there'd be positive impulses for the markets. And for Trump, it was a moment where he wanted to demonstrate strength. He was walking next to Putin while a US bomber flew above them, the same bomber that recently attacked Iran. This was a signal to everyone not to forget who the most important country in the world is," Us told DW. As if to confirm this, Dmitry Medvedev, chairman of Russia's security council, said after the Alaska summit that a "full-fledged mechanism for meetings" between Russia and the US at the highest level had been restored. "Important: The meeting proved that negotiations without preconditions and simultaneously with the continuation of the special military operation are possible. Both sides directly put the responsibility for future negotiation results on Kyiv and Europe," Medvedev wrote on social networks. The term special military operation is how Russia refers to its war against Ukraine. More uncertainty following Alaska summit Ivan Us thinks that the summit did not get Ukraine closer to peace. Instead, it intensified the chaos, as the US and Russia are making contradictory statements about continuing possible trilateral dialogue involving Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. For example, Moscow says that Trump and Putin did not discuss a trilateral summit with Zelensky, while Washington says the opposite. Zelenskyy himself spoke of receiving an invitation to a trilateral meeting. "We support President Trump's proposal for a trilateral meeting between Ukraine, the US, and Russia. Ukraine emphasizes: Important issues can be discussed at the level of heads of state, and a trilateral format is suitable for this," he wrote on social media after a phone call with Donald Trump. Zelenskyy shared that he would meet with Donald Trump in Washington on August 18. "Ukraine confirms once again that it is ready to work toward peace as productively as possible. President Trump informed me about his meeting with the Russian president and about the key points of the discussion. It is important that US power influences the development of the situation," the Ukrainian president said. Moscow doesn't change its goals There are fears in Ukraine that Zelenskyy's trip to Washington could result in new pressure from the US on Ukraine. "Any 'no' from the Ukrainian side could be portrayed as [a] lack of willingness to end the war. Trump essentially admitted that it's about an 'exchange of territories for security guarantees,' and he confirmed that agreement was reached on certain points and spoke of a 'chance for success,'" Iryna Herashchenko, Ukrainian MP and co-chair of the opposition party "European Solidarity," wrote on social media. She believes that such formulations allow Moscow to present this as legitimization of its demands. "Putin repeated during the brief briefing once again that the actual causes of the conflict must be eliminated. This means that Moscow will not change its goals - because the existence of an independent Ukraine is seen as the actual cause," warns Herashchenko. Ukrainian political scientist Vadym Denisenko, however, believes that Russia's idea of "doing business with the US in exchange for Ukrainian territory" didn't work. Putin managed to gain time, though. "At Alaska, they agreed to negotiate," Denisenko wrote on social media. Nevertheless, he argues that Putin "lost what was most important: his maneuverability. He drastically restricted his scope for action and is actually rapidly falling into China's arms." Denisenko believes that if no results regarding the end of the war are achieved within two months, the issue will become part of Chinese-American negotiations. "In other words: A new window for negotiations will open earliest at the end of the year, realistically only in spring 2026," he predicted.
Time of India
22 minutes ago
- Time of India
Uttarakhand Cabinet passes 2025 bill for minority status to non-muslim educational institutions
Uttarakhand Cabinet took a historic decision by deciding to introduce the Uttarakhand Minority Educational Institutions Bill , 2025, in the coming session of the Legislative Assembly starting on August 19. Independence Day 2025 Modi signals new push for tech independence with local chips Before Trump, British used tariffs to kill Indian textile Bank of Azad Hind: When Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose gave India its own currency Until now, the status of minority educational institutions has been given only to the Muslim community. According to the release, the Bill seeks to extend the benefits of Minority Educational Institutions status to the minority communities other than Muslims, too. Once enacted, it will permit the study of Gurmukhi and Pali also in recognised minority educational institutions. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Undo The Uttarakhand Madrasa Education Board Act , 2016 and the Uttarakhand Non-Government Arabic and Persian Madrasa Recognition Rules, 2019, will stand repealed from July 1, 2026. Under the proposed Bill, this facility will also be available to other minority communities i.e Sikhs, Jains, Christians, Buddhists and Parsis. This is the first such Act in the country, aimed at establishing a transparent process for granting recognition to educational institutions set up by minority communities in the state, while ensuring quality and excellence in education. Live Events Key Features of the Act include Formation of an Authority - A " Uttarakhand State Authority for Minority Education " will be constituted in the state to grant the status of minority educational institutions. It includes Mandatory Recognition - Any educational institution established by Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, or Parsi communities must obtain recognition from the Authority to qualify as a minority educational institution. Protection of Institutional Rights - The Act does not interfere in the establishment and administration of minority educational institutions but ensures that educational excellence is maintained. Mandatory Conditions - To obtain recognition, educational institutions must be registered under the Societies Act, Trust Act, or Companies Act. Ownership of land, bank accounts, and other assets must be in the name of the institution. Recognition can be withdrawn in cases of financial mismanagement, lack of transparency, or activities against religious and social harmony. Monitoring and Examination - The Authority will ensure that education is imparted in accordance with the standards set by the Board of School Education, Uttarakhand, and that student evaluations remain fair and transparent. The Act introduces significant changes for minority community institutions in the state by establishing a transparent process for their recognition. It ensures the quality of education is maintained while protecting the constitutional rights of minorities. Additionally, the state government gains the authority to monitor the functioning of these institutions and issue necessary directives as needed.
