After US President Donald Trump led administration deployed 800 National Guards to the nation’s capital, the new picture of Washington DC’s law enforcement has begun taking shape as some of the members of the National Guard troops began arriving on Tuesday.
The city’s police and federal officials, who have projected cooperation, took the first steps to garner a partnership with the National Guard troops and reduce crime, in what President Trump calls a “lawless city”.
A CNN report stated that five armoured vehicles have been parked near the Washington Monument on Tuesday night, though their mission in the capital city for Tuesday night remains unclear.
I just concluded a productive meeting with DC @MayorBowser at the Department of Justice.
We agreed that there is nothing more important than keeping residents and tourists in Washington, D.C. safe from deadly crime.
At President Trump’s direction, @TheJusticeDept will work…
— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) August 12, 2025
National Guard members started arriving in the city in morning on Tuesday after the Republican president announced that he would be taking over the District’s police department and activating the guard members, something which is legally valid for a temporary period. Trump cited a crime emergency in the city, but the officials contradicted him stressing that the same crime number has been falling noticeably.
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In this image provided by the US Army National Guard, Vice Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. James Mingus speaks with soldiers and airmen from the District of Columbia National Guard at the D.C. National Guard Armory in Washington. (AP)
A White House official quoted by AP said the administration reportedly said that by Tuesday night, National Guard members are expected to be on Washington streets. The official added the US Army said there were no specifics on the locations they will be patrolling.
CNN quoted another White House official who said federal operations alongside the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, DC “will continue focusing on high traffic areas and other known hotspots.”
Mayor Muriel Bowser is said to work alongside the federal officials President Trump has tasked with overseeing the city’s law enforcement, but insisted that the police chief remained in charge of the department and its officers, AP reported.
“How we got here or what we think about the circumstances right now we have more police, and we want to make sure we use them,” Mayor Bowser told reporters.
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It was a shift of tone by Mayor Bowser who had earlier said that Trump’s plan to take over the Metropolitan Police Department and deploy National Guard troops wasn’t a productive step.
