Topline
President Donald Trump said Monday Washington, D.C., police would be controlled by the federal government and that he was deploying 800 National Guard troops there, as he announced a crime crackdown in the capital.
US President Donald Trump arrives for a Purple Heart Event in the East Room of the White House on Thursday August 7, 2025. (Photo by Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The Washington Post via Getty Images
Key Facts
Promising to “clean [Washington, D.C.] up real quick, very quickly,” Trump alleged “crime, bloodshed, bedlam and squalor” there, despite crime in Washington reaching a 30-year low this year.
The president also declared a public safety emergency in Washington, and said Attorney General Pam Bondi would oversee the takeover of local police under the Home Rule Act, which allows the federal government to take over local police in “special conditions of an emergency nature.”
Trump, previewing the announcement earlier Monday on Truth Social, dubbed it “LIBERATION DAY IN D.C.,” the same moniker he used to describe new tariffs he announced in April, adding “the days of ruthlessly killing, or hurting, innocent people, are OVER!”
Monday’s announcement comes after Trump reportedly sent FBI officials to conduct patrols in the city overnight on Sunday and was widely expectd to announce the National Guard deployment.
Trump previewed the announcement in a Truth Social post Sunday that included images of tent encampments and trash along the streets, writing that homeless people “have to move out, IMMEDIATELY,” warning “criminals” would be “put in jail,” and adding “it’s all going to happen very fast, just like the Border.”
In the days leading up to Monday’s announcement, Trump has renewed his threats to “take Federal control of the City,” repeating a warning he’s made for years to tamp down on crime, often putting him at odds with Democrats who control the city’s local government.
Key Background
The Trump administration reportedly reassigned 120 FBI agents to night patrols in Washington, D.C., enlisting agents from Philadelphia and other locations. The Secret Service has also been ordered to conduct “special patrols” in the city. National Guard troops Trump may deploy to Washington are not expected to have arrest power.
What To Watch For
Trump said in a Truth Social post Sunday he will also announce “beautification” efforts in Washington, writing that Monday’s press conference “will also be about Cleanliness and the General Physical Renovation and Condition of our once beautiful and well maintained Capital.”
Tangent
Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser rejected Trump’s claims of a crime spike in Washington, but suggested in an interview on MSNBC on Sunday local authorities would cooperate with the federal crackdown. Bowser said she and Trump have “shared priorities” and touted cooperation between federal and local law enforcement, who she said “always work cooperatively with us, and we expect that they will again.” Violent crime, however, is down 26% in Washington compared to last year, a 30-year-low, Bowser noted in the interview. Trump criticized Bowser in one of his Truth Social posts over the weekend, writing she “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.”
Further Reading
FBI Patrols Reportedly Deployed In D.C. As Trump Says Homeless Must Leave ‘Immediately’—What We Know (Forbes)