Former President Donald Trump boasted on Saturday that Washington, DC, looks and feels completely different from last year, with crime rates dropping sharply thanks to his administration’s tough crackdown on lawlessness. In a post on Truth Social, Trump shared his impressions after touring the capital, saying, “Just toured Washington, D.C., and it is a totally different place than it was last year. No tents, manicured grass and parks, clean streets, no gangs or vicious criminals — THE PLACE IS BEAUTIFUL AND SAFE, and it is going to remain that way! What a difference good government makes! Go to D.C. and enjoy history being made!”
Trump pointed to the federal takeover of policing in DC as the key factor behind the changes. That effort kicked off with a national emergency declaration in August, bringing in National Guard troops and extra federal officers to boost security. The 30-day order expired recently, but Trump isn’t backing down.
On Monday, he ramped up the pressure in another late-night Truth Social message, warning that he’ll declare a new national emergency if DC’s local police refuse to team up with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on deporting undocumented immigrants. Trump argued that without this cooperation from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), “CRIME would come roaring back.” He directly slammed DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, accusing her of letting violence overrun the city for years and now blocking federal immigration efforts. “To the people and businesses of Washington, D.C., DONT WORRY, I AM WITH YOU, AND WONT ALLOW THIS TO HAPPEN. Ill call a National Emergency, and Federalise, if necessary!!!” Trump wrote.
Bowser pushed back hard. On September 2, she issued an order directing city agencies to work with federal law enforcement on an ongoing basis, but she made it clear that didn’t extend to immigration enforcement. Last week, she reiterated that MPD’s role doesn’t include ICE operations and won’t change now that the emergency has ended. “Immigration enforcement is not what MPD does, and with the end of the emergency, it wont be what MPD does in the future,” Bowser said.
Trump has long pushed these kinds of federal interventions to fight crime in Democratic-led cities like Washington, DC, but critics call it an overreach of power. While official reports show a real decline in crime during the federal surge—fewer incidents overall—Trump’s bold claim that the city now has zero crime doesn’t hold up. Just weeks ago, he was praising Bowser for stepping up cooperation with federal agencies, and White House insiders said he was fine letting the emergency fade as long as coordination continued. This latest threat marks a quick turnaround in his tone.
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