LOS ANGELES.–Saying he would clean up homelessness and crime in the streets, 79-year-old President Donald Trump deployed 2,000 National Guard Troops to Washington D.C. Trump said the majority would carry M17 pistols and some M4 rifles as the patrol the streets and engage in beautification projects. Pentagon officials said National Guard troops involved with “beutification taks” and community restoration would not carry weapons. Guard troops patrolling the D.C. Chinatown area wore badges on their sleaves saying “MP” to identify them as military police. National Guard coordinates with D.C. law enforcement to provide assistance wherever it’s needed. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the Guardsmen will receive specialized training to carry out tasks in the inner city environment. “Increased Guardsmen present at the pre-specified metro locations,” said a spokesman.
Hegseth said the Guardsmen would receive addition training as necessary to carry out their mission of increased safety in D.C. neighborhoods. National Guard troops will not be making arrests with a focus on protecting federal assets including buildings and monuments. D.C. Police Chief Pamela A. Smith said crime was down in the D.C. area by 27% but didn’t elaborate overall crimes rates. Guard members from D.C., West Virginia, South Carolina, Ohio, Misssissippi, Louisiana and Tennessee are assisting the D.C. police. Today’s Reuters/Ipsos poll indicated that 46% of respondents in a 1,200 sample oppose the idea of deploying National Guard Troops to D.C. or other American cities. Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said the National Guard and other federal troops were not welcome in Chicago. Pritzker vowed to fight Trump’s order to deploy National Guard to Chicago.
Democrats and the fake news push the false narrative that Trump is moving close to martial law, when he’s responding to real urban problems that have no fix with local law enforcement. When it comes to immigration raids, most big city liberal major run sanctuary cities where the exclude the federal government from interfering with city business or cooperating with federal immigration authorities. When it came to deploying the National Guard or Marines to Los Angeles, Mayor Karen Bass, 71, fought federal authorities tooth-and-nail, despite riots, looting and arson in Los Angeles streets. Bass can’t fathom the fact that she’s little to deal with the city’sformidable homeless population, where homeless emcampments can be found close to the state and federal courts. Bass plans a major clean up and crackdown when the Olympics come to Los Angeles in 2028.
D.C. Mayor Marion Bowser said Trump was asserting control over D.C. in a publicity stunt since crime was down nearly 30%. Democrats and the fake news view Trump’s National Guard deployments as a prelude to martial law. Trump the dictator or fascist has been a Democrat narrative since former Vice President Kamala Harris tried to stick Trump with the dictator label. When it comes to D.C., there are too many murders still going on that make vistors to the capital nervous, something that shouldn’t happen in the capital of the U.S. government. So, instead of big city mayors fighting Trump or accusing him of dictatorship, how about sharing appreciation that he’s trying to get something done. “But if West more need help, like Gavin Newsom did in L.A., I will send in the ‘troops’ which is being done in nearby D.C. and quickly clean up the crime,” Trump said.
Going on CNN or MSNBC, Bowser doesn’t help her city’s credibility when it’s been a well-known fact to visitors in D.C. that the streets are not safe. “I am announcing a history action to rescue our nation’s capital from crime, bloodshed, bedlam and squalor,” Trump said during a press conference with Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi. Bower resents Trump characterizing D.C as an unsafe, crime-infested city. House Speaker Hakeem Jeffries slammed Trump’s troop deployments as “no basis in law.” “The Trump administration has consistently broken the law and violated the Constitution for further the personal and political agenda of a wannabe king,” Jeffries said, repeating the old, worn out Democrat talking points. “Meanwhile, Donald Trump and cowardly Republicans have done nothing to make life more affordable for everyday Americcan,” making more political statements.
Big city mayors like Bowser don’t like to get embarrassed by Trump saying their Democrat controlled cities are dangerous and crime-infested. Saying crime is at a 30-year low doesn’t mean that D.C. is a safe city by any stretch. “We’re getting rid of slums,” Trump said, saying homeless people would have to get off the streets. “Trump does not care about D.C.’s safety, he cares about control,” said a speaker at an anti-troops rally. Trump responded to a report that a member of the Department of Government Efficiency [DOGE] was attacked on the street last week. Trump said the employee was “savagely beaten by a band of roaming thugs” and was “left dripping in blood.” Bowser has nothing to say about that but it’s undeniable that D.C. streets are not safe for visitors from around the world, certainly not for ordinary residents of the city.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineComumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
