The DC National Guard began appearing in the nation’s capital on Tuesday after President Donald Trump announced a day earlier he is deploying guard troops and placing Washington, DC’s police department “under direct federal control,

President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he will seek more permanent federal control of the Washington, D.C., police force as he continues his efforts to ramp-up crime enforcement in the nation's capital.

But during his speech announcing the 2025 Kennedy Center honorees on Wednesday, Trump repeatedly floated circumventing Congress to maintain his hold over the city’s law enforcement. “If it’s a national emergency we can do it without Congress, but we expect to be before Congress very quickly,” Trump said.