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Trump threatens to deploy National Guard to DC
President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened to deploy the National Guard to D.C. following the assault of a former top DOGE employee. It's not the first time he has said he might federalize the District. FOX 5's Shirin Rajaee reports.
WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump is doubling down on his threats to takeover of Washington D.C., even saying he may bring in the National Guard.
This comes after police say a former employee with the Department of Government Efficiency was brutally beaten in the nation's capital.
What we know:
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser's office has confirmed to FOX 5 DC that there will be an increased federal presence in the District over the next two days.
FOX 5 has reached out to D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb as well as the FBI, ICE and the National Guard for comment.
The backstory:
This isn't the first time the president has made such threats—Trump has been clear about his frustration with D.C.'s crime, the city’s homelessness issue and just the general cleanliness of the city. But now, the president is saying that D.C. crime is out of control, and if local officials can't handle it, then he will.
While making an announcement about a $100 billion investment alongside Apple CEO Tim Cook, the president also addressed questions swirling around crime in D.C.
"This has to be the best run place in the country, not the worst. It has so much potential and we're going to take care of it," Trump said on Wednesday.
"The crime is ridiculous. I can show you a chart comparing D.C. to other cities, and you're not going to want to see what it looks like," he went on to say. "We have a capital that's very unsafe, we almost lost a young man that got the hell knocked out of him."
READ MORE: Trump threatens to take federal control of DC after ex-DOGE employee attacked
What they're saying:
Trump said that he may consider federal intervention.
"What a shame—the rate of crime, muggings, killings, you know. We may be bringing in the National Guard maybe very quickly," he said.
Elon Musk commented on the incident, saying in a social media post that "it is time to federalize D.C."
"The president's anger stemming from a vicious attack Monday on a member of his own administration," First and Fourteenth attorney Chris Murray said. "19-year-old Edward Coristine—a high-profile former DOGE employee who worked closely with Elon Musk was beaten by a mob of teenagers after trying to help a young woman who was being carjacked. Two 15-year-olds have since been arrested. the president adding that minors as young as 14 should be prosecuted as adults."
READ MORE: 'Big Balls' beaten in DC: Trump warns District after Edward Coristine attack
"He does have the authority. Under the 1973 D.C. Home Rule Act to take control of D.C. police for 48 hours without really asking anybody. He can just tell the mayor he's going to do it," Murray told FOX 5.
Big picture view:
The president can extend that for another 30 days, but typically, even a temporary takeover would occur only under "special conditions of an emergency."
"I think a lot of people might say, 'geez, that doesn't seem like it's an emergency.' It might be really bad policy. It might be bad policing. It might be an embarrassment to the District, but that is what this power is there for," Murray said.
Full control of D.C. would require repealing the Home Rule Act. Currently, there’s a bill in Congress right now called the "Bowser Act" that calls for that.
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