AG Pam Bondi to lead Washington, D.C., police after Trump sends feds to clean up crime in the nation’s capital

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi will head the Metropolitan Police Department after President Donald Trump federalized law enforcement in Washington, D.C., WRC-TV reported. The president cited rampant crime in the nation’s capital that forced him to hand over the police force to Bondi, with Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Terry Cole serving as interim federal commissioner of MPD. 

On Monday, Trump stunned the nation’s capital when he announced at a news conference that he was sending some 800 service members from the National Guard to Washington, D.C., to assist in bringing crime under control. “We will bring in the military if it’s needed,” Trump told reporters.

“I don’t think we’ll need it,” he clarified. Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth promised National Guardsmen would be “flowing into the streets of Washington in the coming week” with the promise of adding “other specialized units” if necessary to get the job done.

The Army has said the plan is for the troops to assist law enforcement in cleaning up the city. “Between 100 and 200 Soldiers will be supporting law enforcement at any given time. Their duties will include an array of tasks from administrative, logistics, and physical presence in support of law enforcement,” the Army said in a statement Tuesday.

Plan in Motion

Bondi got right to work on Tuesday by coordinating with Muriel Bowser, the Democratic mayor of Washington, D.C., who agreed to “work closely” with the Trump administration after the president signed the order for the feds to take over the police force. Bondi posted about the meeting on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday.

“I just concluded a productive meeting with DC @MayorBowser at the Department of Justice. We agreed that there is nothing more important than keeping residents and tourists in Washington, D.C. safe from deadly crime,” Bondi wrote.

“At President Trump’s direction, @TheJusticeDept will work closely with D.C. city government and @DCPoliceDept to make Washington, D.C. safe again,” Bondi concluded. She thanked all of those involved in a reply to the thread.

I just concluded a productive meeting with DC @MayorBowser at the Department of Justice.

We agreed that there is nothing more important than keeping residents and tourists in Washington, D.C. safe from deadly crime.

At President Trump’s direction, @TheJusticeDept will work…

— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) August 12, 2025

The nation’s capital saw a violent crime spike in 2023, and though rates recently have fallen to the lowest number in decades, it’s still a crime-ridden city, The Hill reported. Unfortunately, Bowser’s hearty support for Trump’s plan to deploy the National Guard was short-lived, but that hasn’t stopped the plan from already getting results.

Early Success

By Wednesday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said there were already 100 arrests made after implementing Trump’s plan, Fox News reported. Around 400 National Guard troops were out on patrol this week, with an additional 500 federal agents on the streets as well, with a focus on nighttime enforcement.

It’s expected that about 200 National Guardsmen will patrol at a time around the clock. Meanwhile, a juvenile curfew is in effect in the Navy Yard until the end of the month following an incident there involving a juvenile discharging a weapon in the area.

Despite the early success, protesters are demonstrating against Trump’s efforts to clean up crime in Washington. One of those protesters turned out to be Sean Charles Dunn, an international affairs specialist in the Criminal Division of the Office of International Affairs, who was arrested and charged with a felony after throwing a sandwich at a federal agent, CNN reported.

“If you touch any law enforcement officer, we will come after you. I just learned that this defendant worked at the Department of Justice — NO LONGER. Not only is he FIRED, he has been charged with a felony,” Bondi wrote on social media after the arrest. “This is an example of the Deep State we have been up against for seven months as we work to refocus the DOJ. You will NOT work in this administration while disrespecting our government and law enforcement,” she added.

Something had to be done about the problems with Washington, D.C., and that’s what Trump has given Bondi the power to do. It’s the nation’s capital, where the business of the federal government takes place and where the president has his home, and it should be protected accordingly whether leftists like it or not.