President Trump announced plans to deploy 800 members of the Washington, D.C. National Guard to the nation’s capital, declaring a public safety emergency. The move was part of a city-wide effort to combat violent crime, such as homicides, robberies, and burglaries, even as such crimes have sharply fallen over the past two years. The move quickly drew outrage from local and Congressional Democrat lawmakers, who decried it as unnecessary, “unsettling,” and a “brazen power grab,” even as those in the GOP applauded it. In an official memo to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Trump invoking Constitutional law to deploy the hundreds of Guardsmen across the city, citing recent high-profile crimes in the city. The order allows for possible additional Guard deployments from other states, as Hegseth is told to coordinate with state governors for any extra Guardsmen as he deems necessary and appropriate. The troops will be in a Title 32 status, under local authority but federally funded, and will be activated to help with administrative and logistical tasks in addition to providing “physical presence in support of law enforcement.”
Trump’s DC National Guard deployment is a significant development in the US military’s efforts to protect and defend the nation’s borders.
