Guard deployed, protests erupt: National Guard steps up presence in Washington; 10 things to know

After deploying the National Guard to the streets of the American capital, Donald Trump is now eyeing longer-term powers over authorities, saying on Wednesday that he is seeking to extend his temporary powers over Washington DC’s police department.

Trump has painted a picture of the US capital as a city gripped by a wave of crime and pervasive homelessness, despite both federal and city crime statistics showing that violent crime has declined precipitously since a spike in 2023. Trump said on Wednesday that the city's crime statistics were a "total fraud," without providing evidence, and that the public would soon see a "big change" in the figures.

Trump announced his DC crime and homelessness crackdown as law enforcement arrested more than 100 people since Aug. 7. The arrests are part of Trump’s March executive order, which established the Making DC Safe and Beautiful Task Force. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt says, “Those living in homeless encampments in the nation's capital will have two choices in the coming days: accept treatment at a homeless shelter or go to jail.”

President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he would ask Congress for an extension of the federalization of DC's police. The move is unlikely to pass, as it would require Democratic support. Trump's comments come after National Guard troops began deploying in Washington, DC, yesterday, with some joining city police last night. The full contingent of 800 troops is expected to be operational by the end of the week.

Trump, earlier this week, invoked a never-before-used clause of the law, the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, that sets out the federal district’s governance structure to take temporary control of the police department, but will need Congress’s permission to extend it beyond the 30 days allowed under the statute.

It is not yet clear what the takeover of Washington's police force means in practice. Chief Pamela Smith has framed the federalization of her department as a collaborative partnership with federal law enforcement agencies, rather than a direct federal takeover, and says she still answers to Mayor Bowser.

President Donald Trump said he may declare a national emergency to maintain control of Washington, D.C.'s police force if Congress doesn't work with him to extend the current federalization plan.

Trump argues he can maintain control over the Metropolitan Police Department indefinitely if he declares a national emergency. "Well, if it's a national emergency, we can do it without Congress. But we expect to be before Congress very quickly. And again, we think the Democrats will not do anything to stop crime, but we think the Republicans will do it almost unanimously. So we're going to need a crime bill. That we're going to be putting in, and it's going to pertain initially to DC. We're going to use it as a very positive example."

The Republican president's extraordinary moves in Washington are reflective of how he has approached his second term in office, shattering political norms and legal concerns to test the limits of his office's power. Separately, hundreds of federal officers and agents from more than a dozen agencies have fanned out across Washington in recent days.

The president has used emergency declarations to justify numerous unprecedented executive actions, including historically high tariffs on foreign imports and his wide-ranging immigration crackdown. Many have drawn lawsuits challenging his authority.