At Trump’s request, 3 states sending National Guard troops to Washington DC
West Virginia, South Carolina and Ohio join Trump’s effort to reduce crime in the US capital
The Republican governors of three states are deploying hundreds of National Guard troops to Washington DC at the request of the administration of President Donald Trump, who has portrayed the city as awash in crime.
The announcements on Saturday of troops from hundreds of kilometres away in West Virginia, South Carolina and Ohio came a day after DC officials and the Trump administration negotiated a deal to keep Mayor Muriel Bowser’s appointed police chief, Pamela Smith, in charge of the police department after DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed a lawsuit to block the federal takeover of the department.
Trump, a Republican, said this week he was deploying hundreds of DC National Guard troops to Washington and temporarily taking over the Democratic-led city’s police department to curb what he depicted as a crime and homelessness emergency.
Justice Department data, however, showed violent crime in 2024 hit a 30-year low in Washington, a self-governing federal district under the jurisdiction of Congress.
West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey’s office said in a statement he was deploying 300 to 400 National Guard troops to DC in “a show of commitment to public safety and regional cooperation”. The statement said he was also providing equipment and specialised training.
South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster responded to a Pentagon request by announcing that 200 of his state’s National Guard troops would be sent.