Six states led by Republican governors have recently revealed their plans to dispatch National Guard soldiers to Washington D.C., expanding the federal control led directly by the President. This move comes in the wake of President Trump militarizing the streets of the capital by deploying 800 National Guard soldiers from D.C. itself, and also federalizing the 3,200-member D.C. local police force. He has also swept in federal officers hailing from several different agencies, like FBI, ICE, DEA, and others into the city.
The decision to send an additional 1,200 troops from these GOP-dominated states — Ohio, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Louisiana — is a conspicuous magnification of those previous initiatives. The Mississippi Governor, Tate Reeves, defended his move to send troops by citing an overwhelming crime rate in the nation’s capital. But, interestingly, the homicide rate in Jackson, Mississippi’s own state capital, was three times higher than that of D.C. as of 2024.
The Mayor of D.C., Muriel Bowser, stated that the crime rate in her city is the lowest it’s been in three decades. ‘This issue is not related to the crime rate of D.C., The figures do not validate the need for 1,000 personnel from other states coming to Washington,’ she commented. An interesting development occurred after the first week of federalization. The D.C. Police Union reported a decline in crime by 8% and a dramatic reduction of violent crime by 22%.
The White House, on the other hand, reported more than 450 arrests and the dismantlement of nearly 75 homeless encampments in the first week itself of federalization. This, however, falls a little short compared to the usually expected 475 arrests per week prior to the federal takeover – and arrests on immigration violations constituted 40% of the total federal arrests – a crime typically outside the purview of local police enforcement.
There are, currently, no concrete indications as to how long these federal forces will stay in the city. A law enacted in 1973 limits the President’s direct control over the D.C. Police to a span of 30 days during emergency situations. However, this statute does not apply to the National Guard deployments or deployments from federal agencies.
Interestingly, these troops have not been assigned to the city’s areas with higher crime rates where their presence could arguably be beneficial. Rather, they have stationed Humvees on the National Mall and have set up intimidating checkpoints near the U Street restaurants. This move has negatively affected the local businesses in the area.
The primary motive behind this strategic movement of troops is not to decrease the crime rate, as one might assume. Trump’s objective is to instill in Americans the belief that violent unrest is rampant which provides justification for the ubiquitous presence of federal troops. He hinted at D.C. acting as ‘a test case for other cities’.
‘If you look at the situation in Chicago, it’s deplorable,’ Trump mentioned last week. ‘New York is also dealing with similar issues.’ The sight of militarized police forces and troops in the city streets significantly inhibits the exercise of gathering and free speech. However, the President wants the country’s people to increasingly accept this as a necessary norm, despite the intimidation.
When Trump asserts that he gives his enforcers the authority to ‘do whatever they deem necessary’, it doesn’t align entirely with legal protocols. ‘However, it bears more truth than it has before.’
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