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Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump - Video: U.S. Department of Justice
Office of the Deputy Attorney General
Washington, D.C. 20530
August 12, 2026
Council of the District of Columbia
John A. Wilson Building
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW,
Washington, D.C. 20004
Dear Councilmembers,
I am not surprised that your recent letter to state governors regarding the National Guard feigns ignorance of the historic public safety strides made in our Nation's capital since August 11, 2025. I am surprised and saddened, however, that you would show such callousness—instead of compassion and care—toward your constituents, who now live in a city with far less violence and fear thanks to the National Guard and the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force (the "Task Force"). Let me be clear, your council has no power to demand that governors remove their brave men and women from serving in uniform in our Nation's capital. Your politically- motivated letter is impotent theatrics not worth the paper it's written on, and D.C. is a much safer place no matter what you say. Because you refuse to speak the truth about the life-preserving work of the Task Force, the truth will speak for itself.
For far too long, violence became an epidemic in D.C., with residents and visitors facing almost unbelievable homicide rates. Murder became commonplace and, tragically, expected. The situation became so dire that, in August 2023, D.C. Councilmember Trayon White—ironically, a signatory to your letter to the governors—publicly declared that D.C. was "clearly in a war zone," and suggested deployment of the National Guard to stem the violence. "One of the biggest thing[s] they could provide is presence," White said. "The issue right now in our community is that you hear it over and over again, we don't have enough officers. We don't have enough resources."² After White's remarks, the city continued to experience the horrific consequences of this public safety crisis, with bloody month after bloody month. At the same time, carjackings and other violent crimes also skyrocketed in D.C.—and there is substantial reason to believe that crime was being undercounted.³
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¹ Kate Ryan, 'We are clearly in a war zone': DC Council member calls on National Guard to fight city violence,
(Aug. 9, 2023), https://wtop.com/dc/2023/08/we-are-clearly-in-a-war-zone-dc-council-member-calls-on-national-
guard-to-fight-city-violence/.
² Id.