WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump is planning to deploy National Guard troops to Washington D.C., a Defense official told USA TODAY, as part of an aggressive federal effort to crack down on crime in the nation’s capital.
Trump is set to hold a press conference at 10 a.m. Monday from the White House where he’s expected to announce the guard’s deployment after the president has increasingly criticized crime in Washington even as it’s reached a 30-year low.
Trump has threatened a federal takeover of the nation's capital and ordered federal officers to the city's streets.
More: Trump says homeless people in DC 'have to move out IMMEDIATELY'
"Washington, D.C. will be LIBERATED today! Crime, Savagery, Filth, and Scum will DISAPPEAR," Trump wrote in an Aug. 11 post on Truth Social, his social media platform. "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!!!"
