Trump again threatens DC’s home rule: What to know
The article reports that former President Donald Trump has reiterated his threat to take control over Washington,D.C.’s local government,which currently operates under home rule and is independently managed. Trump cited concerns including perceived high crime rates, criticism of mayor Muriel Bowser, and a potential deal between the city and the Washington Commanders football team as reasons for considering federal intervention. While Trump claims the White House has “tremendous power” to manage the city and hinted at testing this power, any actual takeover would require congressional action to repeal the district’s home rule, a move that currently has limited support, mostly from a few Republicans.
Washington, D.C. residents have elected their own mayor and council as 1973, and while Congress reviews local laws and budgets and can override them, direct federal control is generally limited. Trump could temporarily assume command over the Metropolitan Police department during emergencies but only for a restricted period with congressional notification.
Mayor Bowser has moderated her stance toward Trump amid these tensions, removing politically sensitive symbols like the Black Lives Matter Plaza mural after Trump threatened to cut federal highway funds, and avoiding language such as “sanctuary city” to reduce conflict with Republicans.
Despite Trump’s claims about crime, data from law enforcement shows that violent crime, including homicides and carjackings, has significantly declined in recent years to the lowest levels in over 30 years, challenging the narrative of a deteriorating public safety situation.
Trump again threatens DC’s home rule: What to know
President Donald Trump repeated his threat to take over Washington, D.C.’s, government, which operates independently under home rule.
In recent days, Trump has cited perceived high crime, Mayor Muriel Bowser, and a potential deal between the district and the Washington Commanders as his reasons for attempting to take over D.C.’s government.
“We’re thinking about doing it, to be honest with you. We want a capital that runs flawlessly,” Trump said. “It wouldn’t be hard for us to do it. And we’ve had a good relationship with the mayor. We’re testing to see if it works.”
“We have tremendous power at the White House to run places when we have to,” he said.
However, a takeover of the district would not be as simple as Trump has portrayed. It would require Congress to abolish the city’s home rule, which currently allows for a mayor and locally elected D.C. Council. Just a handful of elected Republicans support the repeal of home rule.
Since 1973, residents of Washington, D.C., have been empowered to elect their own mayor and other government officials. The city currently has more than 675,000 residents, and is more populous than Wyoming and Vermont, as well as many counties in the western United States.
There are still limits to home rule. Congress has to review all legislation passed by the D.C. Council before it becomes law, the district’s budget, and the president’s appointment of judges in the district. Congress also has the power to amend or repeal local laws. In 2023, for example, Republicans in Congress for the first time in 30 years nullified a local law when they blocked changes to D.C.’s criminal code.
Trump could more easily take over the Metropolitan Police Department if he determined that “special conditions of an emergency nature exist which require the use” of the force.
In that situation, however, Trump could control MPD for only 48 hours, but he could extend control for 30 days if he notified the top-ranking members of certain House and Senate committees that have oversight over the district.
Bowser, once defiant against Trump, has in recent months taken a measured approach to her relationship with the president as he and Congressional Republicans have threatened to take over the district. After implementing the Black Lives Matter Plaza, a two-block-long street mural outside the White House in 2020, she ordered it to be removed after Trump threatened highway funding for the district. She has also stopped referring to D.C. as a “sanctuary city,” a phrase that has provoked Republican ire.
Trump has long called for the federal government to take over Washington, D.C., which he has said has “too much crime, too much graffiti.”
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The most violent crimes in the city, mainly homicides and carjackings, saw steep drops in frequency last year. There were fewer than 200 homicides for the first time since 2020. Carjackings additionally declined by nearly half last year after increasing for six straight years.
Violent crime in 2024 hit the lowest point in the district in more than 30 years, according to police data. Violent crime has also been down so far this year.
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