Donald Trump federalized law enforcement in Washington, D.C., sending National Guard units and a heavy federal presence without a riot or comparable pretext. The federalized forces prioritized immigration enforcement, with White House numbers reporting 383 arrests during the first week and immigration arrests driving the surge. Officers made nearly three times as many arrests for immigration violations as for firearm possession, with two arrests related to homicides. The federalization involved commandeering local D.C. police to support ICE operations. The federal model was proposed for blue cities such as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Baltimore, and Oakland. Critics warn the tactic could normalize militarized federal policing and enable mass deportation under a manufactured crime emergency.
According to the White House's own numbers, as reported by WUSA9, the immediate priority of the newly federalized law-enforcement presence in D.C. has been going after undocumented immigrants: In the first week of President Donald Trump's federal takeover of D.C.'s Metropolitan Police Department, 383 people were arrested, according to the White House ... Numbers from the White House show immigration arrests are driving the surge. Officers made nearly three times as many arrests for immigration violations as firearm possession. Two arrests were related to homicides.
This is less a matter of federal law enforcement usurping local responsibilities than of the Feds commandeering D.C. police to support ICE. You could definitely envision this administration pursuing federalization as a strategy for compelling local cooperation with the mass deportation program in blue cities elsewhere, which may be why Trump has already suggested emulating the D.C. example in places like New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Baltimore, and Oakland.
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