Washington D.C.’s mayor and police chief are welcoming the elevated law enforcement presence in their city since President Donald Trump announced a federal takeover of the city’s police department. However, as Trump pushes Congress to extend his authority over the district, Washington officials continue to say the takeover was not necessary.
Mayor Muriel Bowser told community leaders on Tuesday that the city isn’t experiencing a crime spike or an emergency that warranted federal intervention. Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith still leads the department, but she is working with Trump’s appointed MPD leaders to deploy agents in areas that need it.
“I would continue to talk about this as an intrusion on our autonomy,” Bowser told leaders.
She told them the district is working on a one-page “Know Your Rights” flyer to assist residents through the takeover.
Bowser’s comments differed from what she and Smith told reporters the same day about the presence of federal officers. Bowser said she sees good that could come from placing more law enforcement on the streets.
According to the department’s staffing reports, Washington, D.C. had 3,181 officers as of Tuesday, Aug. 5. The department’s union has battled with the chief and city officials to address what they said is a 50-year low in staffing. The district has lost more than 600 officers since 2020.
Union chair Gregg Pemberton said in a statement that members supported Trump’s order.
“We know that we have to get illegal guns off of our streets,” Smith said. “And if we have this influx or enhanced presence, it’s going to make our city even better.”
Extending the order
Trump used inaccurate data about Washington’s crime rate to justify the takeover. The Justice Department said violent crime hit a 30-year low in 2024, and the police department said crime reports have continued to drop in 2025.
But Trump pledged to lengthen his order, and he has asked Congress to back him. The district’s home rule act allows a 30-day federal takeover during emergencies, but requires congressional approval for longer-term intervention.
“So, we’re gonna need a crime bill that we’re gonna be putting in, and it’s gonna pertain, initially, to D.C.,” Trump said Wednesday at the Kennedy Center. “… We’re gonna use it as a very positive example. And we’re gonna be asking for extensions on that, long-term extensions, because you can’t have 30 days.”
He coined the bill as a “D.C. security fund,” but it already faces an uphill battle in Congress. Senate Republicans need at least seven Democrats to join them in approving the measure. But Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told journalist Aaron Parnas that his party won’t grant it, using an expletive in his reply.
Federal agencies swarm DC streets
Users shared videos on TikTok, X and Reddit of agents from the United States’ Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service and other agencies flooding the streets of the nation’s capital.
Trump also authorized 800 troops from the D.C. National Guard to help patrol the streets.
Some videos showed agents ushering drivers through a vehicle checkpoint, stopping all who crossed into the street. Behind the cameras and drivers were protesters shouting at the agents to leave and warning others about the officers.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a Tuesday press briefing that the officers would arrest people suspected of homicide, firearms offenses and fare evasion, among other crimes.
“This is only the beginning,” she said. “Over the course of the next month, the Trump administration will relentlessly pursue and arrest every violent criminal in the district who breaks the law, undermines public safety and endangers law-abiding Americans.”
Residents split on federal presence
The night of Trump’s orders, residents told Straight Arrow News that crime in the city needs to be addressed, but were undecided on how that should happen. Lifelong resident Geronimo Collins acknowledged youth crime taking place, but said the city and federal governments should partner together to lower the crime rate.
Judy Moore has lived in D.C. for about 20 years and is unsure whether she supports Trump’s order. But she wants harsher penalties for criminals.
“They should be stricter on the crimes,” Moore said. “Whoever commits the crime, whether it’s a youth or an adult. Because they’re coming out, repeating, coming out, repeating, going back, doing the same thing.”
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Author: Alan Judd
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