Trump in the briefing room.Alex Brandon/AP
Residents of Washington, DC, where crime rates have consistently fallen, can soon expect to see the National Guard patrolling the streets as a part of President Trump’s claims that violent crime is rampant in the capital. The plan, which Trump celebrated as a liberation, will also reportedly include 120 temporarily reassigned FBI agents to assist with nighttime patrols. “Crime, Savagery, Filth, and Scum will DISAPPEAR. I will, MAKE OUR CAPITAL GREAT AGAIN!” the president said on social media.
The move follows the president’s militarization of Los Angeles, where over 4,000 National Guard members and at least 700 Marines were deployed to crush the largely peaceful demonstrations protesting the administration’s immigration raids. In DC, Trump appears to be motivated to take action because of something slightly odder: an incident involving a government employee known, mostly, as “Big Balls.”
Confused? Here are some basic things to know about DC’s federal takeover—and our president’s penchant for an outsized, exceedingly theatrical police response.
I’m sorry. Who the hell is “Big Balls,” and why are they in the same sentence as the National Guard?
“Big Balls” refers to the singular man, 19-year-old Edward Coristine, a former high-profile DOGE staffer. Though he quit the government once Elon Musk left, it appears as though Coristine was still hanging around DC when he became the victim of an assault and attempted carjacking last week. Police arrested two 15-year-olds who were seen fleeing the scene. The incident sparked a furious response from Trump, who has since seized on the assault to portray DC as a crime-infested hellhole.
This has led to a general crescendo and push for pro-cop measures. In his news conference on Monday, Trump said that he intended to take aim at DC’s crime laws. The US Attorney for DC, Jeanine Pirro, is also calling to reverse laws that allow people to seek reduced sentences if they are under the age of 25.
Wait, but that’s one—yes, violent—crime related to Big Balls. Is DC actually having a broad problem?
Overall crime in DC, including carjackings, has been steadily dropping. In fact, officials cited a 30-year low for violent crime back in January. “Any comparison to a war-torn country is hyperbolic and false,” DC Mayor Muriel Bowser said on Sunday in response to Trump’s characterization.
Interestingly enough, while Trump portrays DC as crime-ridden, the Trump administration is also cutting $20 million in security funding for the nation’s capital.
So, what will Trump’s federal takeover look like?
Trump on Monday compared his plans for DC to his actions at the US-Mexico border. “I’m officially invoking Section 740 of the Home Rule Act,” he said before rattling off several false statistics about carjackings and invoking “drugged-out maniacs” and “caravans of mass youth.” With this crackdown, Trump has explicitly stated his intention to target the city’s homeless population.
Speaking to reporters in the room, Trump framed the deployment as beneficial to them, too. “You don’t want to be raped, shot, and killed,” he said.
“You spit, and we hit,” Trump continued, referring to young people he claimed he witnessed spitting on law enforcement officials.
We already have a preview of what such an intense escalation in police presence will bring to DC. Here’s what happened on Sunday as the FBI started to scatter across the city, according to NPR: “At one intersection, a minor traffic accident between a car and a moped brought at least two dozen agents running, some wearing masks and one carrying a rifle. Local DC Metropolitan police were also on scene.”
Tell me more about Section 740 of the Home Rule Act.
It allows the president to assume authority over the DC Metropolitan Police Department in the case of an emergency. As we saw in LA, at the border, and beyond, Trump has a habit of stretching what qualifies as an “emergency” to fit his political agenda—and to the point of utter meaninglessness.
That sounds terrifying. I feel like I’ve heard Trump complaining about DC for a while.
Yes, the president has long claimed, again, without merit, that there isn’t enough of a police footprint in DC. That it’s gone to hell. That there’s too much graffiti. That it demands a Trumpian takeover.
That takeover is now here. “You’ll have more police and you’ll be so happy,” Trump said on Monday.