Mayor Washington, DC, Muriel Bowser has advocated that the city will become the 51st state after President Donald Trump announced that the federal government will control the local metropolitan police station.
Bauser, who has been the mayor of the city since 2015, made his remarks on Tuesday, August 12th, when he appeared on Charlamanut’s God radio show The Breakfast Club.
“It’s this time that you need to know why your country’s capital, where 700,000 tax-paying Americans live, should be the 51st state,” said Bowser, a radio show.
“(Trump) wants to send a message to the city that if they can escape this in Los Angeles, if they can escape this in DC, they can escape in New York, Baltimore, Chicago, or elsewhere millions of people live, work and do the right thing.
On Monday, August 11th, Trump announced he would call Section 740 of the Home Rules Act to take control of the police department. The 1973 law restricts Washington, D.C. residents’ authority to govern themselves.
Under the law, the president can control the local police for two days, but additional times require congressional notice or amendments to existing laws. Thirty days later, Trump will need Congressional approval to maintain control of the DC police.
Trump has touted the idea of taking over police since 2020, when protests of black lives were capturing cities, and has since voiced his criticism of Washington, D.C. leaders.
His recent attempt to crack down on violent crime comes after a government efficiency (DOGE) employee was assaulted during an attempted carjacking on August 3rd.
“We’re going to reclaim the capital,” Trump said at an August 11 news briefing at the White House.
The president also said he would deploy National Guard troops to cities as part of his efforts.
Bowser rebutted the characterization that violent crimes in the city went out of control and opposed the president’s actions. This is the first time the president has taken control of the local police.
Data from the Metropolitan Police Department found that violent crime in DC fell 26% compared to the same period last year.
“The numbers just don’t justify the action,” Bowser says. She said that using it in a way that scares the community is “not a good idea” for local police, which has gained citizen trust.
Bowser said the president appears to be targeting urban areas where he is not very popular, including DC.
Trump “knows very much the number of DC residents who voted for him in the 2024 election, she said. Approximately 6% of the citizens voted for President in the 2024 election.
The president has named other liberal cities like Chicago and Los Angeles as locations where federal forces could be next deployed.
God Sharramagnu Tar asked Bowser if he believed Trump’s actions were “a trial execution for the police state.”
She did not respond directly to the question, but she stated:
“Now… he’s trying to make it normal where the federal government says it should overtake the local police and make it normal, so if he tries it elsewhere, people will be bleached into it.”
She continued: “It’s not normal, so we can’t insensitive to it.”
Michelle Del Rey is a trending news reporter for USA Today. Contact her at mdelrey@usatoday.com.
