President Donald Trump took unprecedented steps toward federalizing Washington, D.C. on Monday, saying it's needed to fight crime even as city leaders pointed to data showing violence is down. He took command of the police department and deployed the National Guard under laws and Constitutional powers that give the federal

Trump has painted a picture of the U.S. capital as a city gripped by a wave of crime and pervasive homelessness, despite both federal and city crime statistics showing that violent crime has declined precipitously since a spike in 2023.