President Donald Trump threatened to take control of Washington, D.C. in an effort to tackle the out-of-control crime in America’s Democrat-run capital.
“We would run it so good, it would be run so proper, we’d get the best person to run it,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
“And we know the crime would be down to a minimum, would be much less.
“And, you know, we’re thinking about doing it, to be honest with you.”
D.C. has limited autonomy under the 1973 Home Rule Act, which enables locals to choose their own mayor and city council.
However, all laws require approval from Congress.
Trump said his chief of staff, Susie Wiles, is working closely with D.C.’s Democrat Mayor Muriel Bowser.
Earlier this year, Bowser submitted to pressure from Trump to clear homeless encampments and remove the large “Black Lives Matter” mural that was painted on a downtown street during the “George Floyd” riots.
“We want a capital that’s run flawlessly, and it wouldn’t be hard for us to do it,” Trump said.
“And we’ve had a good relationship with the mayor, and we’re testing it to see if it works.”
Crime in the city spiked in the early 2020s, exposing regular citizens and even public officials to carjackings, assaults, and other violent acts.
So far this year, violent crime has fallen 25%, but homicides have remained flat compared to the same time in 2024.
The recent murder of a Republican intern in D.C.’s northwestern area served as a grim reminder that the city is far from safe.
At Tuesday’s Cabinet Meeting, Trump also said he would clean up New York City in the likely event that radical socialist Democrat Zohran Mamdani is elected mayor.
“We’re not going to have — if a communist gets elected to run New York, it can never be the same,” Trump said.
“But we have tremendous power at the White House to run places when we have to.”
New York’s mayoral race has attracted nationwide attention after Mamdani, a young socialist assemblyman, won an upset in the Democratic Party primary.
Mamdani’s radical views have led critics, including Trump, to label him a dangerous “communist.”
After winning the Democrat primary, it is now likely that Mamdani will be the next mayor of the deep blue city.
Trump, a Queens native, continues to express affection for his hometown years after he stopped living there permanently.
His administration is leading the renovation of Penn Station, despite the hostility between Trump and New York’s Democrat Governor Kathy Hochul.
The president has often lamented New York’s recent decline, and he has made similar comments about D.C., calling the conditions in America’s capital unacceptable.
In response to his latest remarks about a takeover, Mayor Bowser highlighted her efforts to be cooperative.
“These comments have been made for two years,” she said.
“I think our approach to working with the President has been a good one: to focus on our shared priorities, which we have.”
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