DC political leaders criticize federal surge in the District, caution other cities they may experience it next
A month after President Donald Trump first deployed federal law enforcement personnel in the District of Columbia, the federal takeover of the nation’s capital remains a major concern for the city's lawmakers.
At a Headliners Newsmaker event at the National Press Club on Sept. 16, D.C. at-large council member Christina Henderson said the presence of federal law enforcement, especially U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, has had a chilling effect on residents.
She explained that when Trump spoke about cooperation between the Metropolitan Police Department and ICE, the reality was that “you would have someone who would call 911 for a call for service for an actual [emergency]. An MPD officer would arrive, and then there would be an ICE agent who was sitting in the same vehicle who would also pop out.” In such cases, Henderson said, a domestic violence incident could quickly escalate into an immigrant arrest.
“Now we have whole communities who, they're not going to call 911 for very legitimate reasons, because of fear of immigration enforcement,” she said.
Henderson added that some MPD officers told her the federal surge had set them back years, or even decades, in building trust with certain neighborhoods.
D.C.'s shadow senator who represents the District in Congress but has no voting power, Ankit Jain, described the federal law enforcement surge as “an occupying army.”
“These people are being sent in without us requesting them, and not to help us,” he said. “They're not doing this for D.C. They're doing it to D.C.”
The initial federal occupation of D.C. lasted 30 days and expired on Sept. 10. But Trump said Monday, Sept. 15, that he would retake control of the MPD if it doesn't cooperate with ICE. On Truth Social, he wrote: “To the people and businesses of Washington, D.C., DON’T WORRY, I AM WITH YOU, AND WON’T ALLOW THIS TO HAPPEN. I’ll call a National Emergency, and Federalize, if necessary!!!”
Jain said Trump’s ultimate goal “is to run D.C. in line with his far-right values and agenda.” He said Trump and members of Congress backing him “are trying to turn D.C. into a laboratory for how you would run a city if far-right Republicans controlled it.” If they succeed in D.C., “they will use that as an example for the rest of the country.”
Henderson urged other cities to pay close attention to what is unfolding in D.C., “because it could be coming to your city next.”
On Monday, Trump signed an order sending the National Guard into Memphis to combat crime, calling it “a replica of our extraordinarily successful efforts” in D.C.
The lawmakers said the consolidation of power is made possible because D.C. residents don't have the ability to participate in how they are governed.
Jain said, “At the end of the day, there are more than 700,000 people who live in Washington, D.C., who pay taxes, who fight in our wars, and who deserve the birthright granted to every single citizen of this country, which is to have a representative in the U.S. Congress advocating for their interests.”
He said, “If London can have voting rights, if New Delhi can have voting rights in India, if Paris can have voting rights in France, then there is no reason that Washington, D.C., cannot have voting rights and full representation in the United States of America."