Some of the 800 National Guard members deployed by President Donald Trump began arriving in the nation's capital on Tuesday (August 12, 2025) ramping up after the White House ordered federal forces to take over the city's police department and reduce crime in what the president called — without substantiation — a lawless city.
The influx came the morning after Mr. Trump announced he would be activating the guard members and taking over the department. He cited a crime emergency — but referred to the same crime that city officials stress is already falling noticeably. The President holds the legal right to make such moves for at least a month.
Trump says he's placing Washington police under federal control, deploying National Guard
Mayor Muriel Bowser pledged to work alongside the federal officials Mr. Trump has tasked with overseeing the city's law enforcement, while insisting the police chief remained in charge of the department and its officers.
“How we got here or what we think about the circumstances — right now we have more police, and we want to make sure we use them,” she told reporters.
