United States President Donald Trump has announced that he is temporarily taking control of the Washington, DC, police department, while deploying 800 National Guard troops to the city.Trump said his actions are needed to “rescue” the US capital from a surge in crime.While violent crime spiked in Washington, DC, in 2023, data shows it has been falling quickly since then.Here is what we know:What has Trump announced?During a 78-minute news conference, Trump announced that the federal government would take control of the District of Columbia (DC) Metropolitan Police Department to address surging crime.“I’m announcing a historic action to rescue our nation’s capital from crime, bloodshed, bedlam and squalor and worse,” Trump said during the conference in which he was joined by US Attorney General Pam Bondi, who will oversee the city’s police force while it is under federal control.“This is Liberation Day in DC, and we’re going to take our capital back. We’re taking it back,” Trump said.“Under the authorities vested in me as the President of the United States, I’m officially invoking section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act… and placing the DC Metropolitan and Police Department under direct federal control,” he said.He also announced the deployment of the National Guard.“I’m deploying the National Guard to help reestablish law, order and public safety in Washington, DC, and they’re going to be allowed to do their job properly,” he said.Trump also said that he intends to remove the capital’s homel …
