President Donald Trump is considering deploying up to 1,000 National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., according to a report.
An NBC4 report on Sunday night revealed that the deployment, which Trump teased earlier this week amid his promised crackdown on “violent crime” in Washington, could be announced as soon as Monday. One defense official and two other U.S. officials added that most of those troops would likely be pulled from the DC National Guard.
The timeline of the potential deployment lines up with Trump’s press conference to address “Crime and Beautification” in the city, which is scheduled for 10 a.m. Eastern time the same day.
The president has been teasing the presser throughout the weekend, including on Saturday when he suggested it would “essentially, stop violent crime” in the capital.
“It has become one of the most dangerous cities anywhere in the World. It will soon be one of the safest!!! Thank you for your attention to this matter,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
He mentioned it twice more on Sunday, with one post calling for the homeless population in Washington to “move out, IMMEDIATELY” and another targeting renovation projects in the city that Trump sees as overpriced.
Trump’s increased attention to crime in Washington followed the brutal assault of a former DOGE staffer, who was jumped by 10 juveniles early last week.
Since then, he has threatened to strip the capital of home rule, and has targeted Mayor Muriel Bowser over the crime statistics in the city.
Bowser defended her work mitigating crime in the city in a Sunday show appearance on MSNBC, while also acknowledging a “terrible spike” in 2023.
“But this is not 2023, this is 2025,” Bowser said. “Any comparison to a war-torn country is hyperbolic and false.”
TRUMP TEASES MONDAY PRESS CONFERENCE THAT WILL ‘STOP VIOLENT CRIME’ IN DC
She also greenlit Trump’s potential use of the National Guard, but suggested their role could be limited.
“They’re not law enforcement officials. These are men and women who leave their families to serve our country, and that is just not their primary role to enforce local laws,” Bowser said.