Trump vows to evict homeless from Washington DC, mulls National Guard role
US president’s plan faces pushback from DC mayor, who disputes ‘crime spike’ claim
US President Donald Trump pledged on Sunday to evict homeless people from the nation’s capital and jail criminals, despite Washington’s mayor arguing there was no current spike in crime.
While details of the plan were unclear, the administration was preparing to deploy hundreds of National Guard troops to Washington, a US official told Reuters, a controversial tactic Trump used recently in Los Angeles to tackle immigration protests over the objections of local officials.
Trump has not made a final decision, the official said, adding that the number of troops and their role was still being determined.
Unlike in California and every other state, where the governor typically decides when to activate Guard troops, the president directly controls the National Guard in Washington DC.
Past instances of the Guard’s deployment in the city include in response to the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol by a mob of Trump supporters.