Topline
Democratic leaders denounced President Donald Trump’s plans to deploy federal agents and national guardsmen in Washington, D.C. calling the takeover a “ploy” and a distraction from the Epstein scandal.
A Drug Enforcement Administration agent is seen with a Metropolitan Police Department officer near the Washington Monument on Monday.
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Key Facts
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called the takeover a “political ploy and attempted distraction from Trump’s other scandals,” while Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Maryland Democrat who represents a district bordering the city, called the move in a statement a “phony, manufactured crisis if I’ve ever seen one.”
Trump has repeatedly floated the idea of similar takeovers in cities like Chicago and New York, but Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker brushed off the idea before connecting it to one of the administration’s largest ongoing controversies: “By the way, where are the Epstein files?”
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, also a Democrat, called the move “unsettling and unprecedented,” but struck a calmer tone while addressing Washingtonians at a press conference on Monday.
Other mayors from the cities identified by Trump joined in their criticism—Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott told CNN it was “very notable that each and every one of the cities called out by the President has a black mayor, and most of those cities are seeing historic lows in violent crime.”
Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee also rejected Trump’s characterization, calling it “wrong and based in fear-mongering in an attempt to score cheap political points” and noting that overall crime was down 28% from last year in the California city.
Some protests have already been organized, and about 150 people rallied near the White House at a rally organized by the Free D.C. group, local station FOX 5 reported.
National Guardsmen arrive at the D.C. Armory on August 12.
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Border Patrol agents wait to be deployed on August 12.
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Members of the National Guard walk from the DC Joint Force Headquarters to the DC Armory on August 12.
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FBI and Border Patrol agents make an arrest along the U Street corridor on August 10.
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Federal agents patrol a near The Wharf on August 11.
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Key Background
Federal agents from the FBI, Department of Homeland Security and Border Patrol were spotted on the streets of Washington on Monday night. The Trump administration reportedly reassigned about 120 FBI agents to patrol the city. The president also deployed about 800 national guardsmen to the city, and a provision Home Rule Act of 1973 to take over the Metropolitan Police Department, placing it under the control of Attorney General Pam Bondi. Bondi said she had a “productive meeting” with Bowser on Tuesday, and confirmed the Justice Department would “work closely with D.C. city government” and police department. Over the weekend, the Trump administration previously deployed about 450 federal agents to the streets of D.C., where they reportedly made arrests for crimes including gun possession without a license and driving without a license, while also seizing three firearms.
Has Crime Risen In D.c.?
Violent crime in D.C. hit a 30-year low, the Department of Justice said in January. Homicides are down 32%, while robberies fell by 39% during that time period. Trump’s focus on crime in D.C. began after a 19-year-old former DOGE employee—Edward Coristine, who goes by the online nickname “Big Balls” —was assaulted during an attempted carjacking last week. However, even armed carjackings are down 53%, according to prosecutors. The Trump administration disputes this narrative, noting that the police department reported 1,588 violent crimes this year so far. However, the department’s own data notes this is a 26% year-over-year decrease from 2024. The Trump administration also pointed to reports that a police commander was placed on leave in May while under investigation for changing crime data—an allegation also made by the DC Police Union.
Tangent
Administration officials are also evaluating plans to create a “Domestic Civil Disturbance Quick Reaction Force,” according to documents reported on by The Washington Post on Tuesday. The Department of Defense plan would station 300 National Guard troops in Arizona and 300 more in Alabama, which could deploy in response to protests or civil unrest on either side of the country in as little as one hour. A similar plan was put in place before the 2020 presidential election, the Associated Press reported at the time, after Trump previously deployed the Guard to D.C. in response to that summer’s George Floyd protests. It was not immediately clear if Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had reviewed the plan yet, and the earliest it could be implemented was fiscal year 2027, the Post reported.
FBI and Border Patrol officers patrol in D.C. on August 10.
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DEA agents patrol near the Washington Monument on August 11.
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Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/zacharyfolk/2025/08/12/democrats-condemn-trumps-dc-takeover-plans-as-federal-agents-begin-patrolling-capital/