By Jackson Richman
Contributing Writer
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump announced on Monday that he will activate hundreds of National Guard troops to be in the nation’s capital to deal with the issue of crime.
“This is Liberation Day in D.C. and we’re going to take our Capitol back,” Trump said at a press conference. “We’re taking it back under the authorities vested in me as the president of the United States.”
Trump invoked Section 740 of the D.C. Home Rule Act of 1973, which puts control of the Metropolitan Police Department under the president for 48 hours.
The president can keep renewing this control for up to 30 days while notifying Congress. After 30 days, he must get approval from Congress.
He said Attorney General Pam Bondi is “taking command of the Metropolitan Police Department” and that Terry Cole, head of the Drug Enforcement Administration, is “designated as the interim federal commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Department.”
The president signed an executive order declaring a crime emergency in the District of Columbia. He also signed a presidential memorandum to mobilize Washington’s National Guard.
The National Guard troops would not have the authority to arrest people, although they can detain people until law enforcement arrives.
“The mayor of D.C., Muriel Bowser, is a good person who has tried, but she has been given many chances, and the crime numbers get worse, and the city only gets dirtier and less attractive,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Aug. 10 ahead of the announcement.
Appearing on MSNBC on Sunday, Bowser said, “We are not experiencing a crime spike.”
Trump announced on Sunday that he would remove homeless people in Washington from the city.
“The homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY. We will give you places to stay, but FAR from the Capital,” he posted on Truth Social.
On Thursday, Trump ordered an increase in federal law enforcement in the nation’s capital.
“President Trump has directed an increased presence of federal law enforcement to protect innocent citizens,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
The operation, led by the U.S. Park Police, involves officers from the U.S. Capitol Police; Homeland Security Investigations; the Federal Protective Service; the Drug Enforcement Administration; Enforcement and Removal Operations; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the U.S. Marshals Service; and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
The number of officers had not been disclosed.
D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb criticized Trump’s announcement.
“The administration’s actions are unprecedented, unnecessary and unlawful. There is no crime emergency in the District of Columbia. Violent crime in DC reached historic 30-year lows last year, and is down another 26% so far this year. We are considering all of our options and will do what is necessary to protect the rights and safety of district residents,” he wrote on X.
Last week, a former staffer with the Department of Government Efficiency was assaulted while trying to stop a carjacking.
“Crime in Washington, D.C., is totally out of control,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Aug. 5 in the aftermath of the incident.
“If D.C. doesn’t get its act together, and quickly, we will have no choice but to take federal control of the city, and run this city how it should be run, and put criminals on notice that they’re not going to get away with it anymore.”
According to preliminary statistics from the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department, overall crime in the district decreased by 7% year-over-year in the first eight months of 2025. Violent crime dropped by 26% and property crime by 4%, the data show.
There has been a 12% drop in homicides, a 50% decrease in sexual abuse cases, a 28% reduction in robberies, and a 20% drop in burglaries.
The data show that in 2024, there was a 35% drop in violent crime compared to the previous year, while there was an 11% decrease in property crime. This marked a 15% decrease in crime overall.
The president said he is looking to get federal authorities involved in other cities, such as Chicago.
The Fraternal Order of Police has expressed concern over the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department’s handling of crime classifications.
FOP Chair Gregg Pemberton told NBC4 Washington on July 18, “When our members respond to the scene of a felony offense where there is a victim reporting that a felony occurred, inevitably there will be a lieutenant or a captain who will show up on that scene and direct those members to take a report for a lesser offense” such as a theft or a felony assault.
Aldgra Fredly contributed to this report.
