In a dramatic assertion of federal authority, President Donald Trump has placed Washington’s police force under direct national command, according to The Daily Caller.
The move, invoking a rarely used provision of the District’s Home Rule Act, shifts operational control of the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department to federal leadership and initiates a new directive for immigration enforcement cooperation.
On Monday, Trump triggered Section 740 of the Home Rule Act following a recent violent high-profile incident, pinning the blame on what he calls permissive city policies that have let crime spiral unchecked.
Calling it “Liberation Day in D.C.,” Trump announced what may be the most forceful federal intervention in local policing in recent memory. Citing the need for urgent safety reforms, he declared that the federal government is now steering the city’s law enforcement priorities.
The action comes amid rising tensions following the assault of a former government employee, known publicly as “Big Balls,” which sparked national outcry and paved the way for this aggressive move.
Days later, D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith issued a memo laying out the new marching orders: start cooperating with ICE or prepare to make way for those who will.
Smith's memo reflects a seismic shift for a city long known as a progressive haven. Under the new direction, D.C. officers are now allowed to alert federal agents about unauthorized migrants encountered during routine operations—even if the individuals are not under arrest.
Information-sharing with ICE is now back on the table, and even more notably, police officers may now assist with the transportation of both ICE personnel and individuals in immigration custody.
This effectively dissolves the city’s previous “don’t ask, don’t tell” dynamic when it came to immigration status and police enforcement—a policy soft on public safety and tough on common sense.
Border Czar Tom Homan called the shift “way past due,” pointing out what many conservative law enforcement advocates have said for years: cooperation between agencies isn’t just helpful, it’s essential.
“Our nation’s capital should be an example,” Homan said, “that law enforcement should always work with other law enforcement to take illegal alien public safety threats off our streets and out of our neighborhoods.” One wonders why it ever wasn’t.
Homan added that a safer city “should always be a shared goal.” That’s something reasonable people on both sides of the aisle can agree on, even if the woke corners of city government stay suspiciously quiet.
While the policy shift may have support in law-and-order circles, not everyone is happy. This week, FBI personnel were followed by demonstrators in the U Street neighborhood, signaling some on-the-ground backlash to heightened federal presence.
Still, it’s impossible to ignore that Trump’s strategy appears to be less about stirring chaos and more about reestablishing control in a city where it has been lacking.
Even as the administration deployed hundreds of National Guard troops throughout D.C., calls for a comment from the mayor’s office were met with silence.
Mayor Muriel Bowser’s administration declined to respond publicly to the changes, a notable absence given the dramatic overhaul of the city’s law enforcement posture.
With the District's leadership notably missing in action, the Trump administration isn’t waiting around for permission to move forward. Whether it's due to political calculus or outright disagreement, the silence from city hall is deafening.
In the meantime, the people of Washington, D.C. may breathe a little easier knowing the doors once closed between local and federal enforcement are swinging wide open—and safety, once again, is back on the agenda.