Explainer-Can Trump take control of Washington to fight the city's crime?
(Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to put Washington, D.C., under full federal control to reduce crime, even as city officials stressed crime is already falling.
While Trump does have some authority over the capital city's police force and National Guard soldiers, a full federal takeover would likely be blocked in court. Here is why.
WHAT DOES THE CONSTITUTION SAY ABOUT CONTROL OF DC?
The U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1787, provided for the creation of a federal capital district to serve as the permanent seat of the government.
The Constitution made clear that Congress has complete legislative authority over the district. But Congress has historically delegated at least some of the day-to-day work of municipal government to other entities.
HOW IS DC GOVERNED?
A federal law passed by Congress in 1973, known as the Home Rule Act, allowed city residents to elect a mayor and council, who have some autonomy to pass their own laws.
Congress still has budgetary oversight over D.C., however, and can overturn local legislation. Congress did that most recently in 2023, voting to overturn changes to Washington's laws that lowered penalties for some crimes.
WHO CONTROLS DC LAW ENFORCEMENT?
The Democratic mayor of Washington, Muriel Bowser, has authority over the city's Metropolitan Police Department. But the Home Rule Act allows the president to take control of the MPD for federal purposes during emergencies if 'special conditions of an emergency nature exist.'
A presidential takeover is limited to 30 days, unless Congress votes to extend it through a joint resolution.
Trump invoked this part of the Home Rule Act on Monday, saying in an executive order that there is a "crime emergency" in the city that necessitates federal management of the police department.
Bowser has pushed back on Trump's claims of unchecked violence, saying the city is "not experiencing a crime spike" and highlighting that violent crime hit its lowest level in more than three decades last year.
Violent crime, including murders, spiked in 2023, turning Washington into one of the nation's deadliest cities, according to city police data.
However, violent crime dropped 35% in 2024, according to federal data, and it has fallen an additional 26% in the first seven months of 2025.
Trump also has broad control over the D.C. National Guard's 2,700 soldiers and airmen. They report directly to the president, unlike counterparts in other states and territories.
Trump said on Monday he was deploying 800 National Guard troops to Washington.
SO CAN TRUMP 'FEDERALIZE' DC?
It is highly unlikely.
To exert full federal control of D.C., Trump would need Congress to repeal the Home Rule Act.
Such a repeal would require 60 votes in the U.S. Senate, where Trump's Republican Party has a 53-47 advantage. Democrats have been supportive of home rule for DC and are not expected to cross party lines to endorse Trump's vision.
But there are ways Trump can exert more influence over the district without fully taking it over.
Trump in recent months has directed federal law enforcement agencies such as the FBI to increase the police presence in Washington.
Trump has broad authority to reallocate FBI personnel, and in recent months, FBI agents around the country have been given temporary assignments to help with immigration enforcement.
Trump also signed an executive order in March to make D.C. "safe and beautiful," establishing a task force to increase police presence in public areas, maximize immigration enforcement, and expedite concealed carry licenses.
CAN TRUMP EVICT DC'S HOMELESS POPULATION?
Trump has said homeless people must move out of Washington, without offering specifics of a plan to accomplish this.
"I'm going to make our Capital safer and more beautiful than it ever was before," Trump said on Truth Social. "The Homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY. We will give you places to stay, but FAR from the Capital."
The federal government owns much of Washington's parkland, so the Trump administration has legal authority to clear homeless encampments in those areas, like President Joe Biden did while in office. But the federal government cannot force people to move out of the city because they lack shelter, legal experts said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump's BLS Pick Calls For Suspension Of Monthly Jobs Report: Data 'Needs To Be Fixed Immediately'
E.J. Antoni, the economist tapped by President Donald Trump to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics and an architect of the Heritage Foundation's Project 2025, suggested the agency should suspend monthly jobs reports in a Tuesday television appearance. Antoni appeared on Fox Business Tuesday morning to discuss Trump's lack of confidence in the Bureau's monthly job data. 'How on earth are businesses supposed to plan – or how is the Fed supposed to conduct monetary policy – when they don't know how many jobs are being added or lost in our economy? It's a serious problem that needs to be fixed immediately,' Antoni told FOX Business. Suspending Job Reports: A Risky Proposition Trump nominated Antoni to the position after his unprecedented firing of former BLS Chief, Erika McEntarfer, on Aug. 1. The Bureau's July jobs report showed nonfarm payrolls rising by 73,000, far below economists' estimates of 110,000. The report also included a revision of May and June's tallies, down by over 100,000 each. Similar revisions were observed during the Biden Administration. 'Until it is corrected, the BLS should suspend issuing the monthly job reports but keep publishing the more accurate, though less timely, quarterly data,' Antoni added. 'Major decision-makers from Wall Street to D.C. rely on these numbers, and a lack of confidence in the data has far-reaching consequences.' Can Data Integrity Survive Political Pressure? Trump called the jobs report 'rigged' and 'fake' following his firing of McEntarfer. Top economists dismissed Trump and Antoni's insinuations and reiterated that attempts to erode the independence of reporting agencies could sow distrust in markets. '[Suspending monthly jobs reports] would [be] a serious mistake in my estimation. It would only fuel critiques of a politicization of job market data and likely result in volatility across asset classes,' RSM US chief economist Joe Brusuelas told Axios. Withholding or fabricating economic data is a common practice observed in many authoritarian regimes, such as the Soviet Union during the 1980s. The Dangers Of Distrust In Economic Data University of Michigan professor Justin Wolfers described Antoni as unqualified for the position in a post on X. 'Antoni finished grad school 5 years ago at Northern Illinois with no obvious distinction, his dissertation is meh, and involved no research on labor markets or data collection, he has never published a paper, and his life's work has earned 1 citation,' Wolfers said. 'This record would be insufficient to earn a job as a junior staffer at BLS.' Also Read:Photo: Shutterstock Up Next: Transform your trading with Benzinga Edge's one-of-a-kind market trade ideas and tools. Click now to access unique insights that can set you ahead in today's competitive market. Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? APPLE (AAPL): Free Stock Analysis Report TESLA (TSLA): Free Stock Analysis Report This article Trump's BLS Pick Calls For Suspension Of Monthly Jobs Report: Data 'Needs To Be Fixed Immediately' originally appeared on © 2025 Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
CNN
23 minutes ago
- CNN
What to Make of Trump's DC Takeover - Amanpour - Podcast on CNN Podcasts
What to Make of Trump's DC Takeover Amanpour 55 mins The streets of Washington, DC will soon be patrolled by 800 National Guard troops, the city's police will be under federal control for the first time in their history, and homeless people will be forced to leave. According to President Trump, it's all necessary to tackle a purported wave of lawlessness. And while crime is certainly a problem in the capital, Trump's description of a public safety emergency told a slightly different story than the statistics. There's actually been a decrease in crime, with violent crime at a 30-year low. With Trump hinting that Washington is just the first city to face these measures, what does this say about his exertion of executive power? Andrew McCabe was the acting FBI Director in the first Trump administration, he joins the program to discuss. Also on today's show: Victoria Fontan, Rector of the American University of Malta & Mumtaz Islamzay, Afghan Student; David A. Graham, Staff writer, The Atlantic
The Hill
24 minutes ago
- The Hill
Benny Johnson rails against DC crime at White House, floats presidential medal for ‘Big Balls'
Conservative pundit and social media personality Benny Johnson used an appearance in the White House Press Briefing Room's 'new media' seat to rail against crime in Washington, D.C. and suggest a Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) staffer, who was recently assaulted in the district, be awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. 'As a DC resident of 15 years … I have witnessed so much mugging and so much theft I lost track. I was carjacked. I have murderers on my Ring camera and masked shootings,' Johnson said at the top of Tuesday's briefing. 'I witnessed a woman on my block get held up at gun point for $20. And my house was set ablaze with my infant child inside.' The right-wing pundit then turned his gaze to other reporters seating in the White House. 'So to any reporter that says, and lies, that DC is a safe place to live and work,' Johnson said turning back to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. 'Thank you for making the city safe.' Johnson is one in a growing number of D.C.-based supporters of President Trump who have shared stories of feeling unsafe in the district, praising the president's decision on Monday to mobilize the national guard in the district and take control of its police department. Trump's announcement came on the heels of a number of high-profile crimes involving people with ties to government, including an incident earlier this month in which Edward 'Big Balls' Coristine, a 19-year-old former DOGE staffer, was attacked. Johnson on Tuesday suggested the White House honor Coristine as part of its pledge to crack down on D.C. crime. 'Will the president consider giving the presidential medal of freedom to Big Balls?' he asked Leavitt. 'I haven't spoken to him about that,' the press secretary chuckled in response. 'But perhaps its something he would consider.' Johnson is the latest in a slew of right-leaning podcasters, social media influencers and content creators on the right the White House has sought to elevate in the briefing room as a means to promote the president's agenda and push back on mainstream media coverage of his administration. During Monday's wide-ranging press conference announcing the D.C. crime crack down, conservative commentator Brain Glenn told Trump he was 'robbed last year, on the street by these teenage thugs who had a gun and got away with it,' and suggested 'adult crimes deserve adult penalties.' Trump's crime crackdown has angered Democrats and some local leaders in D.C., many of whom have pointed to statistics showing decreases in crime in the district in recent years and warned the president is overstepping his authority.
