President Donald Trump mentioned Tuesday he’s weighing a federal takeover of Washington, D.C., spouting bogus claims about rampant crime within the nation’s capital, and hinted he may pursue the identical with New York Metropolis.
Trump, who first floated the thought in February, introduced up the takeover within the Oval Workplace when a reporter requested him who he thinks Republicans ought to assist within the upcoming New York mayoral race. Trump mentioned he’s “not getting involved” however went on to slam Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani as a “disaster” and “communist” who could be dangerous for town.
“We have tremendous power at the White House to run places when we have to,” Trump then mentioned earlier than disclosing he’s already “testing” a plan to take over Washington.
“We’re thinking about doing it, to be honest with you. We want to. We want a capital that’s run flawlessly,” he mentioned.
“We could run D.C. I mean, we’re looking at D.C. We don’t want crime in D.C. We want the city to run well,” he additionally mentioned, including that town’s mayor, Democrat Muriel Bowser, is “working very closely” with White Home chief of workers Susie Wiles.
Bowser’s workplace declined to remark when requested about Trump’s remarks.
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“We would run it so good,” Trump mentioned of the district. “It would be run so properly. We’d get the best person to run it. The crime would be down to a minimal ― would be much less.”
Violent crime in Washington hit its lowest level in 30 years in 2024 and is down 35% from 2023, based on town’s Metropolitan Police Division. That features a 32% discount in homicides and 39% drop in robberies. In 2025, crime charges have continued to plummet.
When Trump first raised the thought in February, he was particularly centered on the presence of unhoused individuals within the nation’s capital.
“Too many tents on the lawns — these magnificent lawns,” he mentioned, including, “You can’t have tents on all your beautiful — your once magnificent plaza and lawns.”
Congress already has the authority to vet the district’s legal guidelines and overturn them, however Trump has but to supply any data on how he would pursue a federal takeover of town.
Some Republican lawmakers have pushed to dissolve 1973’s Dwelling Rule Act, which handed a few of Congress’ powers over town to native authorities. Nonetheless, Republicans are unlikely to realize that with out a filibuster-proof majority within the Senate.
