What's the Reason Behind Trump's Deployment of National Guard Troops in Washington, D.C.?

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United States President Donald Trump said he was deploying 800 national guard troops to Washington DC and temporarily taking over the city’s police department, an extraordinary assertion of presidential power in the nation’s capital.

Trump’s move, which bypassed the city’s elected leaders, was emblematic of his second-term approach, which has seen him wield executive authority in ways with little precedent in modern US history and in defiance of political norms.

Most national guard forces answer to state governors and have to be “federalised” to be brought under presidential control, but in Washington DC these troops already report only to the US president.

Why has Trump deployed national guard in Washington?

The overwhelmingly Democratic city faces allegations from Republican politicians it is overrun by crime, plagued by homelessness and financially mismanaged — although violent offences are down.

“Our capital city has been overtaken by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals,” Trump told a news conference at the White House.

“This is Liberation Day in DC, and we’re going to take our capital back,” he said.

The administration says 800 DC national guardsmen — potentially backed up by other “specialised” guard units — will be deployed to the city of 700,000.

Hundreds of officers and agents from more than a dozen federal agencies, including the FBI, have fanned out across the city in recent days. Attorney general Pam Bondi will oversee the police force takeover, Trump said.

What do crime statistics actually show?

Violent crime, including murders, spiked in 2023 following the COVID-19 pandemic, turning Washington into one of the nation’s deadliest cities.

However, violent crime dropped 35 per cent in 2024, according to federal data, and it has fallen an additional 26 per cent in the first seven months of 2025, according to city police.

A Gallup poll in October found that 64 per cent of Americans believed crime had risen in 2024, although FBI data shows the lowest levels of violent crime nationwide in more than half a century.

What is the US national guard?

The national guard is a military reserve force within the United States Armed Forces, meaning most of its members serve part-time while holding civilian jobs or conducting other activities.

As a response force, the national guard can be mobilised rapidly to address emergency situations on US soil, typically natural disasters.

Outside of a natural disaster, deployment of the guard can be ordered in emergencies created by the breakdown of public order.

When needed, national guard units can also be activated for deployments into combat zones, especially if the US is at war.

US national guard troops walking on a zebra crossing in a deserted street.

National guard troops have been dispatched to Washington many times, including in response to the 6 January 2021 Capitol riots and 2020 protests over police brutality. Source: Getty / Brandon Bell

Unlike parts of the US military, the national guard performs both state- and federal-level functions, and is organised into groupings based in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the US territories of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the US Virgin Islands.

As a state-based force, generally, it is the governor of a state or territory who activates and commands the national guard when needed.

The latest budget from the US defence department authorises 433,000 national guard personnel in total, split across the air national guard and army national guard.

This means that compared to other components of the US military, the national guard is second only to the US army in terms of size.

Has national guard deployment happened before?

Guard troops have been dispatched to Washington many times, including in response to the 6 January 2021 attack on the US Capitol by Trump supporters, and during 2020 protests over police brutality.

It is the second time in the last few months that Trump has deployed troops to a democratically governed city.

What was the response to the deployment?

The Democratic mayor of Washington, Muriel Bowser, has pushed back on Trump’s claims of unchecked violence, saying the city is “not experiencing a crime spike” and highlighting that violent crime hit its lowest level in more than three decades last year.

“While this action today is unsettling and unprecedented, I can’t say, given some of the rhetoric of the past, that we’re totally surprised,” she told a news conference.

Bowser struck a diplomatic tone, saying she and other members of her administration would work with the federal government, even as she again rejected Trump’s claim of widespread crime.

Washington mayor Muriel Bowser has pushed back on Donald Trump’s claims of rising crime in the US capital. Source: AP / Julia Demaree Nikhinson

While Bowser said the law appeared to give the president broad power to take temporary control of the police force, the city’s attorney general, Brian Schwalb, earlier called Trump’s actions “unlawful” and said his office was “considering all of our options”.

The move was criticised by Democrats, including House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, who said the aim was to “further the personal and political agenda of a wannabe king”.

Richard Stengel, a former undersecretary of state in Barack Obama’s administration, pointed out that Washington is not among the most dangerous US cities.

“Throughout history, autocrats use a false pretext to impose government control over local law enforcement as a prelude to a more national takeover,” he posted on X.

“That’s far more dangerous than the situation he says he is fixing.”

Could other US cities be next?

Trump has shown particular interest in taking over Washington, which is under the jurisdiction of Congress but exercises self-governance under a 1973 US law.

He signalled other major US cities with Democratic leadership could be next, including Chicago, a city that has long been beset by violent crime, although it was down significantly in the first half of the year.

“If we need to, we’re going to do the same thing in Chicago, which is a disaster,” Trump said at the White House, adding: “Hopefully, LA is watching.”