Trump deploys National Guard in Washington DC
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The news: US President Donald Trump announced plans to place Washington DC’s police department under federal control and deploy the National Guard to combat what he describes as severe lawlessness in the city.
The context: During a press briefing on Monday, Trump said he is “deploying the National Guard to help reestablish law, order and public safety in Washington DC” in order to “take our capital back” from what he said are “violent gangs”, “bloodthirsty criminals” and “caravans of mass youth.”
The action comes despite statistics showing violent crime fell to a 30-year low in the city last year.
Defense secretary Pete Hegseth and attorney general Pam Bondi flanked Trump during the briefing at the White House, where Trump formally declared the public safety emergency.
Hegseth said that members of the Washington DC National Guard will be “flowing” into the capital over the coming week without disclosing the number of troops.
Hundreds of officers and agents from over a dozen federal agencies, including the FBI, ICE, DEA, and ATF, have already fanned out across the city in recent days.
Earlier on Monday, Trump pre-empted the announcement via Truth Social, stating that Washington DC would be “liberated” and “I will, MAKE OUR CAPITAL GREAT AGAIN! The days of ruthlessly killing, or hurting, innocent people, are OVER! I quickly fixed the Border (ZERO ILLEGALS in last 3 months!), D.C. is next!!!”
The sources: White House media briefing, WSJ, White House Presidential Memoranda
