Today’s announcement that the federal government will make use of Metropolitan Police Department and deploy the National Guard in DC should concern not only the city’s 700,000 residents, but all Americans. Today our federal government seeks to interfere in DC’s local affairs, but any city could be next.
A deeper look at the executive order indicates that rather than taking over MPD, the President is “requesting the services” of MPD as he is permitted to do under the Home Rule Act. We have yet to learn exactly how this will take shape.
But we know that Chief Smith remains in charge of MPD. Mayor Bowser remains in charge of the District government. Local District laws remain the laws. This does not end home rule and MPD is still an independent agency under the authority of the Mayor.
The fact is that violent crime is down 52% in 2 years in DC. We had 78% fewer carjackings in June 2024 over June 2023. There is always more work to do, and we continue to examine and revise the law to give MPD the tools it needs while protecting the civil rights of residents.
It’s clear that this is not just about crime. It’s about exploiting the vulnerability of DC, a jurisdiction without autonomy. I fear it’s a practice run for interference in other cities across the country. We must all stand united against federal interference in local affairs.
Below, you can read the statement my Council colleagues and I issued today. Please contact me and my team if you have questions or concerns.
I know in these times its often comforting to be together. I’ll be at Midlands (3333 Georgia Avenue NW) this Wednesday night for Brianne on Your Block – my office hours in the ward. Please join me and my team from 6-8 pm.
DC COUNCIL STATEMENT IN RESPONSE TO PRESIDENTIAL ANNOUNCEMENT
This is a manufactured intrusion on local authority. Violent crime in the District is at the lowest rates we’ve seen in 30 years. Federalizing the Metropolitan Police Department is unwarranted because there is no Federal emergency. Further, the National Guard has no public safety training or knowledge of local laws. The Guard’s role does not include investigating or solving crimes in the District. Calling out the National Guard is an unnecessary deployment with no real mission.
Public safety is built on trust, consistent enforcement, and community-based strategies. We must ensure that in our pursuit of safety, we do not create an atmosphere of surveillance, intimidation or unequal treatment under the law.
Our local police department is the best in the country, and it is our police officers who should be leading the efforts to keep our communities safe–not the National Guard. The President was unable to cite any evidence that our MPD is not able to do the job. Let’s stay focused.
Our local government regularly partners with the federal government. The federal government plays a role through the United States Attorney’s Office prosecuting violent crime, the Senate confirming judges to serve on our courts, the federal supervision agencies to follow up with people who are released on parole, and Congress passing a budget fix so that DC residents can spend their own tax dollars to pay our police and firefighters the wages they deserve. Taking over our police department and deploying hundreds of National Guard members is not the hard work of public safety – it is a show of force without impact.
It is our job to regularly look at our laws and ensure they are serving our residents’ interests. That’s what we did in 2024 when the Council came together to pass Secure DC, an omnibus with over 100 interventions to drive down crime. We did it again when the Council in June 2025 passed Peace DC legislation that puts the city on a path to more sustainable safety. And in the last two years where we have been laser focused on driving down crime, we have decreased violent crime by nearly 50% of what it was, yielding the lowest violent crime numbers our city has seen in 30 years.