Trump Takeover Of DC Police 'Unsettling' Mayor Says As Cops Back President

WASHINGTON, DC — President Donald Trump announced on Monday that he was placing the Metropolitan Police Department under federal control and deploying the National Guard to "reestablish law, order and public safety in Washington, D.C., and they're going to be allowed to do their job properly."

"This is Liberation Day in D.C. and we're going to take our capital back, taking it back under the authorities vested in me as the President of the United States," Trump said during a news conference. "I'm officially invoking section 740, of the District of Columbia Home Rule act. You know what that is, and placing the DC metropolitan police departments under direct federal control."

Trump said the moves will make the nation’s capital safer. The president has promised new steps to remove the homeless and lower crime in Washington, prompting the city's mayor, Muriel Bowser, to voice concerns about the potential use of the National Guard to patrol the streets.

Although homicides rose post-pandemic — as they did in most of the U.S. — D.C.'s homicide rate has been dropping in the past few years, reported the Washington Post. MPD said homicides in the District were down 32 percent year-to-date, following a 31 percent decrease in 2024 compared to 2023.

"The increase in violent crime in the heart of our Republic has consequences beyond the individual tragedies that have dominated media coverage," Trump said, in the Executive Order released on Monday authorizing his actions. "Such lawlessness also poses intolerable risks to the vital Federal functions that take place in the District of Columbia. Violence and crime hamper the recruitment and retention of essential Federal employees, undermine critical functions of Government and thus the well-being of the entire Nation, and erode confidence in the strength of the United States."

Read The Full Text Of President Trump's Executive Order

Bowser Calls Trump Takeover Of DC Police ‘Unsettling’

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said Monday afternoon that the city had reached a 30-year low in violent crime. Bowser said that crime was down not just from a post-pandemic peak in 2023, but from 2019 levels prior to the pandemic.

Bowser highlighted the district’s parks, schools and public transportation and said that it was important for those who live and visit here to know “just how beautiful our city is and how proud we are of all that we’ve accomplished here.

The mayor said Trump's actions were “unsettling” but not without precedent.

“My message to residents is this,” Bowser said. “We know that access to our democracy is tenuous. That is why you have heard me and many Washingtonians before me advocate for full statehood.”

DC Police Union Backs Trump’s Takeover

The union representing DC police officers is backing Trump’s takeover move, though it called for the federal intervention to be temporary.

Union chairman Gregg Pemberton said it agrees with the president that “immediately action is necessary” to tamp down crime.

Still, Pemberton said that the city ultimately needs a police department that’s “fully staffed and supported.”

He also called for the repeal of criminal justice policies and laws passed by the city council.

About 500 federal law enforcement officers are being tasked with deploying throughout the nation’s capital as part of the Trump administration’s effort to combat crime, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on Monday.

More than 100 FBI agents and about 40 agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are among federal law enforcement personnel being assigned to patrols in Washington, the person briefed on the plans said. The Drug Enforcement Administration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Marshals Service are also contributing officers.

In his speech, Trump criticized other cities for their crime rates, including Baltimore and Chicago.

Reaction To Trump's Order From MD, VA, National Politicians

“If President Trump really cared about safety in D.C., he would have immediately deployed the National Guard on January 6, 2021, and wouldn’t have pardoned hundreds of rioters who broke into the Capitol that day, including individuals convicted of assaulting police officers," Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Virginia) said. "Crime is at a 30-year low in D.C., making these steps a waste of taxpayer dollars and an unnecessary escalation clearly designed to distract Americans from issues like rising prices and incompetence from the Trump Administration.”

Virginia's other senator expressed similar concerns on Monday. “Decisions about our nation’s capital should be made in close consultation with local leaders and those most directly responsible for the safety of D.C. residents," Sen. Mark Warner (D) said. "Instead, the president again chose to bypass those conversations, undermining trust and coordination at a time when unity and collaboration are essential. Washingtonians deserve a federal government that works with them, not one that makes unilateral moves from the White House without listening to the people on the ground.”

“Donald Trump has personally incited more crime in Washington D.C. than perhaps anyone else living. He pardoned the violent criminals who attacked our Capitol on January 6th and put them back in American communities. He even made a man who was filmed urging the crowd to kill D.C. police officers a senior adviser at the Justice Department.

Rep. Eugene Vindman, a Democrat representing Virginia's Seventh Congressional District, tweeted: "Trump just announced he’s taking over D.C.’s police and sending in the National Guard. He’s trying to distract you from his cozy, appalling history with Jeffrey Epstein. It won't work."

Trump is testing his ability to take over entire cities with military force. This is terrible federal overreach. https://t.co/k5DIYOJ3er
— Democrats (@TheDemocrats) August 11, 2025

Vindman joined U.S. Reps. Don Beyer (VA-8), Steny Hoyer (MD-5), Jamie Raskin (MD-8), Jennifer McClellan (VA-4), Glenn Ivey (MD-4), Suhas Subramanyam (VA-10), Sarah Elfreth (MD-3), and April McClain Delaney (MD-6) in a statement released by the National Capital Region Delegation about Trump's actions on Monday.

“Donald Trump has personally incited more crime in Washington D.C. than perhaps anyone else living," the lawmakers said. "He pardoned the violent criminals who attacked our Capitol on January 6th and put them back in American communities. He even made a man who was filmed urging the crowd to kill D.C. police officers a senior adviser at the Justice Department."

They also called out the president on his "temporary" takeover of the Metropolitan Police Department and his "soft launch of authoritarianism."

Scroll down to read the full National Capital Region Delegation statement.

The Arlington County Democratic said in a post on X: "Trump is testing his ability to take over entire cities with military force. This is terrible federal overreach."

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, a Democrat, called Monday's executive order "the latest effort by the president to distract from the issues he should be focused on — including the roller coaster of the US economy thanks to his policies."

Trump's raw authoritarian power grab in DC is part of a growing national crisis. He's playing dictator in our nation's capital as a dress rehearsal as he pushes democracy to the brink.

This assault on freedom is exactly why we've fought for DC statehood & to give DC control of its National Guard.
— Senator Chris Van Hollen (@ChrisVanHollen) August 11, 2025

Maryland's junior senator, Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, tweeted that the city of Washington, D.C. belongs to the people there, not the occupant of the White House.

"If he actually cared about the wellbeing of the people of Washington, he wouldn't have blocked D.C. from spending its OWN money in the way it saw fit," Alsobrooks said of Trump. "This is not only drastic executive overreach, but the latest marker in how far this President is willing to go to attack our democracy."

Maryland Governor Wes Moore said President Trump's decision to mobilize the National Guard to conduct municipal policing in D.C. lacks seriousness and is deeply dangerous.

“These actions by the president lack both data and a battle plan. He is simply using honorable men and women as pawns to distract us from his policies, which continue to drive up unemployment and strip away health care and food assistance from those who need it most," Moore said. … "We await outreach from the White House if they want to have a serious conversation about public safety. But we won’t hold our breath.”

Democratic leaders from across the country, including those in California where Trump mobilized the National Guard earlier this summer to quell protests, denounced the president's move. And several said Monday's announcement is a way to distract attention from the bipartisan push for more information about the late sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein, and his ties to Trump.

"Trump’s federal takeover of D.C. isn’t about safety, it’s about distracting Americans from, high prices, a bad jobs report, a falling economy, and the Epstein files," said Rep. Eric Swalwell, a Democrat from California.

Violent crime in Washington, D.C. is at a thirty-year low.

Donald Trump has no basis to take over the local police department.

And zero credibility on the issue of law and order.

Get lost.
— Hakeem Jeffries (@RepJeffries) August 11, 2025

Congressman Johnny Olszewski from Baltimore County disputed Trump's description of Baltimore City. He tweeted:

"Facts > fearmongering. Violent crime is down 26% this year. Homicides are at a 10-year low. Baltimore isn’t “so far gone,” Mr. President."

Patch reached out to both candidates running in the Sept. 9 special election to fill the vacant the 11th District Congressional District seat for comment about Trump's announcement.

"During Trump’s first term as President, violent crime spiked nationally and in D.C., driven by his failure to address the COVID crisis and the culture of chaos and law-breaking that he embodies," said Democrat James Walkinshaw. "Thankfully, since then, violent crime has decreased and D.C.’s crime rate is the lowest we have seen in 30 years.

"Deploying the National Guard will do nothing to improve public safety in D.C. It’s yet another transparent attempt to distract from the crises Trump has created — a failing economy, rising prices, and his Administration’s cover up of the Epstein files."

Stewart Whitson, Walkinshaw's Republican opponent, said: "The safety and security of our nation's capital should never be a partisan issue. D.C. has faced a historic rise in violent crime, and too often, politics has gotten in the way of allowing law enforcement to do their jobs. We also know that some crime in D.C. has been underreported — another example of soft-on-crime policies that make it harder for police to keep communities safe. I support any lawful action that restores order, protects innocent residents, and ensures our officers and first responders have the tools and backing they need."

In social media posts over the weekend, Trump decried the District as “one of the most dangerous cities anywhere in the World," reported the Associated Press. Police statistics show homicides, robberies and burglaries are down this year when compared with this time in 2024. Overall, violent crime is down 26 percent compared with this time a year ago.

“Any comparison to a war-torn country is hyperbolic and false," said D.C. Mayor Bowser. She questioned the effectiveness of using the Guard to enforce city laws and said the federal government could be far more helpful by funding more prosecutors or filling the 15 vacancies on the D.C. Superior Court, some of which have been open for years.

"This is an emergency," Trump said. "This is a tragic emergency, and it's embarrassing."

This is not the first time Trump has suggested deploying the National Guard in the District. In June 2020, he called on governors to "dominate the streets" and called his warning that he might deploy the U.S. military to states to handle the Black Lives Matter protests.

Related:

• Trump Calls Riots' Domestic Terror'; Urges Military Deployment In DC
• Bowser: Armed National Guard, Army Not Wanted On DC Streets
• AFL-CIO Building, St. John's Church Set On Fire During Protests
• Trump Mob Attacks Capitol; 4 Deaths; 69 Arrests; FBI Seeks Tips

"I don't think that the military should be used on the streets of American cities against Americans," Bowser said, during a June 2, 2020, press briefing. "And I definitely don't think it should be used for a show."

The show Bowser was referring to took place June 1, 2020, about 25 minutes before the 7 p.m. curfew the mayor had imposed in the District. That's when federal law enforcement officers used tear gas and rubber bullets to push back a crowd of demonstrators in Lafayette Park, so the president could have his picture taken holding a Bible, as he stood in front of St. John's Episcopal Church.

Last week, the Republican president directed federal law enforcement agencies to increase their presence in Washington for seven days, with the option “to extend as needed."

On Friday night, federal agencies including the Secret Service, the FBI and the U.S. Marshals Service assigned more than 120 officers and agents to assist in Washington.

“I just think that’s not the most efficient use of our Guard,” Bowser said Sunday on MSNBC's “The Weekend,” according to AP's reporting. She acknowledged is "the president’s call about how to deploy the Guard.”

Bowser does not have the authority to deploy the National Guard in the District and must appeal to the Defense Department for assistance. This was the case during the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection, when Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol in order to disrupt the certification of the free and lawful presidential election in 2020.

Trump has repeatedly suggested that the rule of Washington could be returned to federal authorities, according to AP. Doing so would require a repeal of the Home Rule Act of 1973 in Congress, a step Trump said lawyers are examining. It could face steep pushback.

Bowser acknowledged that the law allows the president to take more control over the city's police, but only if certain conditions are met.

“None of those conditions exist in our city right now," she said. “We are not experiencing a spike in crime. In fact, we’re watching our crime numbers go down.”

The following is the full text of the National Capital Region Delegation statement released on Monday afternoon:

“Donald Trump has personally incited more crime in Washington D.C. than perhaps anyone else living. He pardoned the violent criminals who attacked our Capitol on January 6th and put them back in American communities. He even made a man who was filmed urging the crowd to kill D.C. police officers a senior adviser at the Justice Department.

“Trump’s “temporary” takeover of the Metropolitan Police Department is not intended to prevent crime, it is a soft launch of authoritarianism. Trump has a longstanding pattern of seeking showy displays of power. As he has shown repeatedly, Trump is working to serve himself and is not concerned with keeping American families safe in cities and towns across our country.

“Inflicting new bureaucracy on the Metropolitan Police Department and clouding their work with heavily politicized National Guard deployments is not a solution to crime. By taking law enforcement away from vital missions for this stunt, for instance pulling counterterrorism officers away from their mission and DEA agents away from fentanyl interdiction, Trump’s misuse of federal police harms crime prevention efforts across the country.

“Crime in our nation’s capital is at historic lows today, but still too high for those who are victimized. We want to build on recent crime-fighting successes in ways that respect, protect, and empower Washingtonians. The President’s announcement this morning is an unserious and unacceptable publicity stunt. If he wants to reduce crime in the District of Columbia, he should focus on getting his Republican allies in Congress to restore the funding they arbitrarily stripped out of the city’s budget, which risks cuts to law enforcement and other public safety measures.”

Signed: U.S. Representatives Don Beyer (VA-8), Steny Hoyer (MD-5), Jamie Raskin (MD-8), Jennifer McClellan (VA-4), Glenn Ivey (MD-4), Suhas Subramanyam (VA-10), Sarah Elfreth (MD-3), Eugene Vindman (VA-7), and April McClain Delaney (MD-6)

The Associated Press contributed to the reporting of this story.