US President put the metropolitan police department of under federal control on Monday and announced he would also deploy the to the US capital city.
Trump claimed “our capital city has been overtaken over by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals.”
However, police statistics show that violent crime in Washington DC fell by 35% in 2024, and fell a further 26% in the first six months of 2025.
Washington’s Democrat mayor, Muriel Bowser, has previously said that the city is “not experiencing a crime spike” and noted that violent crime hit its lowest level in more than three decades last year.
Meanwhile, Trump also said authorities would continue to destroy homeless encampments, which he referred to as “slums.”
What do we know about the National Guard deployment to Washington?
In his announcement, Trump said some 800 National Guard troops would be deployed to Washington.
The National Guard is a reserve unit of the US armed forces. States typically have control over it but the president can also take command during war or emergencies.
DW’s Washington bureau chief Ines Pohl said it was important to remember that The District of Columbia was not a state with a governor, and that it ultimately falls under federal control.
“The president can control Washington — it’s his right,” she said.
Ahead of Trump’s announcement, Washington’s mayor told US broadcaster MSNBC on Sunday that she thought its was “not the most efficient use of our Guard.”
“Any comparison to a war-torn country is hyperbolic and false,” Bowser added.
The move comes after during major protests in June. Most of them have since been recalled.
Trump — himself a convicted felon — previously who were implicated in the January 6, 2021, riots at the Capitol Building in Washington.
Edited by: Wesley Dockery
The post Trump announces National Guard deployment in Washington DC appeared first on Deutsche Welle.
