Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser and Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith struck a conciliatory tone amid a wave of outrage from other district officials in response to President Donald Trump’s decision to federalize the district’s police and activate about 800 National Guard members.

Following Trump’s declaration of a “crime emergency” in the district, Bowser said she plans to follow the authority of Washington’s Home Rule charter and comply with the president’s directions regarding the MPD.

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The mayor’s press conference came after the White House announced Monday that Attorney General Pam Bondi’s office will be in charge of the MPD’s 4,000 staff members, with Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Terry Cole taking over Smith’s role.

“The executive order is also clear that the president has delegated his authority to make requests of us to Attorney General Pam Bondi. I have reached out to Attorney General Bondi and hope to schedule a meeting soon,” Bowser said. 

Bowser noted that the Trump administration has the authority to request the MPD for 30 days, according to the Home Rule charter. She also noted that she did not know of Trump’s plans to federalize the MPD before his announcement Monday morning, but that she did “believe they were going to call up the National Guard” after a brief phone call she had over the weekend.

Bowser conceded that “the fact that we have more law enforcement and presence in neighborhoods” after Trump’s announcement Monday “may be a positive.” However, she also called Trump’s actions on Monday “unsettling and unprecedented,” while underscoring her advocacy for Washington, D.C., statehood.     

In a drastically different tone, the district’s sole congressional representative, Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), published a statement following the press conference in which she chided Trump’s decision as a “historic assault on D.C. home rule.”

“President Trump’s decision to federalize MPD and activate the D.C. National Guard to address crime is an historic assault on D.C. home rule, is a counterproductive, escalatory seizure of D.C.’s resources to use for purposes not supported by D.C. residents, and is more evidence of the urgent need to pass my D.C. statehood bill,” Norton said. “Crime in D.C. reached a 30-year low in 2024 and is down 26% this year compared to the same time period last year. The administration is justifying the decision by misleadingly citing years-old statistics.”

A recent MPD report shows a 26% decrease in all violent crimes and a 7% decrease in total crimes across the district as of Aug. 11. Regardless of these statistics, Trump declared a “crime emergency” in the district, claiming that “crime is out of control in the District of Columbia.”

The District of Columbia Council also released a statement strongly condemning the Trump administration’s actions.

“This is a manufactured intrusion on local authority. Violent crime in the District is at the lowest rates we’ve seen in 30 years. Federalizing the Metropolitan Police Department is unwarranted because there is no Federal emergency,” the D.C. Council said in its statement. 

The council and Bowser also said that the district has the lowest violent crime rate in 30 years. 

“Taking over our police department and deploying hundreds of National Guard members is not the hard work of public safety, it is a show of force without impact,” the D.C. Council said in its statement.

Ward 6 Councilman Charles Allen said on X that the federalization of MPD and National Guard mobilizations is an “extreme, outrageous, and dangerous move for our city.”

Attorney General Brian Schwalb, Washington, D.C., condemned the president’s actions on X. 

“The Administration’s actions are unprecedented, unnecessary, and unlawful. There is no crime emergency in the District of Columbia. Violent crime in DC reached historic 30-year lows last year, and is down another 26% so far this year. We are considering all of our options and will do what is necessary to protect the rights and safety of District residents,” Schwalb said on X. 

Bowser emphasized several times throughout the press conference that Smith is still the department’s chief of police. 

“Chief Pamela Smith is the chief of the Metropolitan Police Department, and its 3,100 members work under her direction,” Bowser said. “The Home Rule charter requires the mayor to provide the services of MPD during special conditions of an emergency, and we will follow the law.”

Smith also underscored her compliance with Trump’s order.

“We have a responsibility to support the executive order, and one of the roles that I have is to ensure that we work very collaboratively with our federal partners,” Smith said.

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The D.C. Police Union also publicly voiced its support for federalization of the MPD.

“We completely agree with the president that crime in the District of Columbia is out of control and something needs to be done with it,” union Chairman Greggory Pemberton told Fox News, saying the department currently has over 800 police officer vacancies. “The fact that we need help from federal law enforcement and maybe even the National Guard shouldn’t come as a surprise.”