(Washington) US President Donald Trump promises new measures to combat roaming and crime in Washington. The city mayor expressed concerns about the potential use of the National Guard to patrol the streets of the capital.
Trump announced on social networks that he will hold a press conference at the White House on Monday to discuss his projects aimed at making the Columbia district “safer and more beautiful than it has ever been”.
“The homeless must leave, immediately,” wrote Trump on Sunday. We will give you places to stay, but far from the capital. Criminals, you don’t have to leave. We will put you in prison, where you should be. »»
Last week, the republican president ordered the federal police to strengthen their presence in Washington for seven days, with the possibility of “prolonging it if necessary”.
Friday evening, federal agencies, including the secret service, the FBI and the Marshals Service, deployed more than 120 police officers and agents to help Washington.
Trump said last week that he was studying the means by which the federal government could take control of Washington, saying that crime was “ridiculous” and that the city was “dangerous”, after the recent assault of an eminent member of the Department of Government Effectiveness.
Trump said in particular to consider the deployment of the National Guard in Washington.
Democrat mayor Muriel Bowser questioned the effectiveness of the use of the National Guard to enforce municipal laws and declared that the federal government could be much more useful by funding more prosecutors or providing the 15 unoccupied positions in the Superior Court of Washington, some of which have been vacant for years.
Mme Bowser cannot activate the National Guard itself, but it can request the Pentagon.
“I just think it is not the most effective use of our guard,” she said on Sunday on the show The Weekendon the MSNBC channel, recognizing that it is “the president who decides how to deploy guard”.
Photo Mark Schiefelbein, Associated Press Archives
Washington Democrat mayor Muriel Bowser
Mme Bowser made his first public comments since Trump began to make publications on crime in Washington last week. She stressed that violent crime in Washington had decreased in 2023 in 2023. Trump’s publications this weekend described the district as “one of the most dangerous cities in the world”.
For mme Bowser, “any comparison with a country torn apart by war is exaggerated and false”.
Police statistics show that homicides, flights and burglaries are decreasing this year compared to the same period in 2024. Overall, violent crime decreased by 26 % compared to the same period last year.
Put Washington under federal authority
In his publications on Truth Social this weekend, President Trump has provided no details on possible new measures aimed at reducing crime, which he considers dangerous for citizens, tourists and workers. The White House refused to provide more details on the announcement on Monday.
Police and the town hall did not answer questions about the next measures envisaged by Mr. Trump.
The president criticized the district, describing it as “tents, misery, filth and crime”. It seems to have been motivated by the assault of Edward Coristine, one of the most visible figures in the bureaucracy reduction campaign known as Doge. Police arrested two 15 -year -old teenagers to attempted car theft and said they were looking for other people.
“It must be the best managed place in the country, not the worst,” said Trump last Wednesday.
He described Mme Bowser of “good person who tried, but he has been given many chance”.
President Trump has repeatedly suggested that the Washington authority could be rendered to the federal authorities. This would require the repeal of the 1973 Home Rule Act by Congress, a measure that Trump said that lawyers are studying. This measure could come up against strong opposition.
Mme Bowser acknowledged that the law allows the president to strengthen control of the city police, but only if certain conditions are met.
“None of these conditions currently exists in our city,” she argued. We do not see an increase in crime. On the contrary, we observe a drop in our crime rate. »»
