AUGUST 15, 2025 – On Aug. 11, President Donald J. Trump declared a crime emergency in the nation’s capital and vowed to make streets there safe again. The National Guard is now playing a big part in that effort, assisting both federal and local law enforcement personnel in enforcing existing laws and taking violent criminals off the streets.
“I think there’s no more important job for this department than to stand alongside federal law enforcement partners and local police in securing our nation’s capital,” said Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson during a meeting today with the Pentagon press corps. “As the White House and the president have said, it is disgraceful that we have allowed D.C. to become so incredibly dangerous.”
About 800 National Guard troops, both Army and Air National Guard, have been called up and activated on Title 32 status to participate in the Safe and Beautiful Task Force. For now, about 200 guardsmen at a time are on the streets providing support to federal law enforcement and the Metropolitan Police Department.
“They will remain there until law and order has been restored in the district, as determined by the president — standing as the gatekeepers of our great nation’s capital,” Wilson said.
While guardsmen are not currently armed as part of their participation, Wilson said their role will be similar to what it was in Los Angeles.
“The National Guardsmen on this mission will assist the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department and federal law enforcement partners with monument security, community safety patrols, protecting federal facilities and offices, traffic control posts, and area beautification,” Wilson said.
Military personnel, Wilson said, are following the D.C. National Guard rules for the use of force.
“They’re all trained in de-escalation techniques, and of course, always retain the inherent right to self-defense,” she said. “They will not be arresting people, but they may temporarily limit the movement of an individual who has entered a restricted or secured area without permission. So, this would be very similar to the LA mission, where we could temporarily [detain] someone and then turn them over to the proper law enforcement authorities.”
But even if guardsmen are not arresting offenders on the streets of the nation’s capital, their mere presence has value, Wilson said.
“I think another … important point of having National Guardsmen all around D.C. is that it is also a deterrent,” she said. “And it makes people feel safe, and it lets everyone know that D.C. is going to be a city in which we can be proud of, and we are standing alongside our federal partners to execute on the president’s directive.”
According to a White House fact sheet, two embassy staffers were murdered in Washington this May. A congressional intern was shot and killed near the White House in June, and on Aug. 3, 2025, a federal employee was beaten by a mob.
A White House executive order also reports that the 2024 murder rate in the District of Columbia was 27.54 per 100,000 residents, and the vehicle theft rate was at 842.4 thefts per 100,000 residents.
Wilson said the department believes it will provide valuable support to both federal and local law enforcement as they follow the president’s directive to make the streets of the nation’s capital safe again.
“We really think we’re going to be a force multiplier … we’re going to allow law enforcement to better conduct the necessary operations that they need to conduct around the capital,” she said. “And we’re going to be there … supporting them.”
By C. Todd Lopez, DOD News