The White House announced a “crime emergency” today in Washington DC and laid out a plan “to protect public servants, citizens, and tourists, and ensure the safe functioning of the Federal government.” As expected, the President’s detractors want us to believe it represents the end of Democracy.
President Trump’s latest Executive Order #195, is specific to Washington DC and “invokes the President’s authority under the District of Columbia Self-Government and Governmental Reorganization Act to require the Mayor to make the services of the Metropolitan Police Department available to the President.”
The latest order addresses crime and vagrancy in our nation’s capital, and is closely related to Executive Order #175 which we highlighted a short time ago. That order addresses crime and vagrancy at a national level.
Citing crime rates that are among the highest in the nation, and higher than most major cities in the world, President Trump stated:
“As President, I have a solemn duty to take care that our laws are faithfully executed, and a sacred responsibility to protect the safety and security of United States citizens who live in and visit our Nation’s capital, including Federal workers who live or commute into the District of Columbia. These conditions cannot persist. We will make the District of Columbia one of the safest cities in the world, not the most dangerous.”
Critics quickly point to violent crime rates falling in DC over recent years. It’s a worn-out refrain, just like we’ve heard in Minneapolis. But just as in Minneapolis, despite trending down, DC’s violent crime rate remains far above what it was just 5-6 years ago. A 10 or 20 percent drop over last year isn’t quite as meaningful if we are just creating a new definition of “normal.”
The Order places operational control of the 3,500 officer Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) with the U.S. Attorney General’s Office. It also directs several hundred National Guard Troops to patrol Washington DC in coordination with law enforcement authorities. Finally, the plan calls for hundreds of federal agents from a variety of federal law enforcement agencies to conduct high visibility patrols in the nation’s capital city, augmenting the MPD and National Guard efforts.
The plan is bold, and that boldness has triggered many on the left to accuse the Trump Administration of being an “authoritarian regime.”
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz was quick to post on X a message that said:
“The road to authoritarianism is littered with people telling you you’re overreacting.”
It’s much of the same fear-mongering rhetoric we have witnessed for years. The truth is the President is a leader and that leadership puts many on the left in the awkward position of having to save face – repeatedly.
For much of the 2024 presidential campaign, we were told by the Biden administration and Democrat leaders that the only way to stop illegal immigration was to pass multibillion dollar legislation. President Trump destroyed that narrative by virtually eliminating illegal immigration withing three months of taking office – through policy change, not legislation.
In the same respect, I wouldn’t bet against the President on his DC crime initiative. He doesn’t mess around; he leads, and that makes many uncomfortable. Let them be uncomfortable.
President Trump is correct in his assessment that it’s a national disgrace to allow our nation’s capital to be filthy and crime ridden. A lack of leadership and a lack of enforcement is to blame.
I was in DC just last week. I walked around the National Mall area and was pleasantly surprised with how clean and orderly that area was – an obvious improvement over my previous visits in the past couple of decades. There were plenty of Capitol police officers, Secret Service police officers, and National Park Service personnel throughout the area. Garbage was picked up, the grass was mowed, and the bushes were trimmed. It was impressive.
However, the seedy underbelly of DC was quickly exposed as I walked away from the mall area. Vagrancy was prevalent, and it became difficult to walk a block without being approached for money or having to walk through smells of urine and feces on the sidewalks. I also can’t recall seeing a single Metropolitan Police Officer as I walked the streets. The difference was dramatic.
My bet is that the President’s efforts will dramatically clean up Washington DC in short order – and it will happen without our Democracy being destroyed. On the contrary, ordinary law-abiding citizens, tourists, and federal employees will be liberated and will once again feel comfortable and safe as they move around our nation’s capital.
And the President’s detractors will be left to move on to the next “crisis,” seemingly always one step behind.
