A big unknown with President Donald Trump’s move Monday to federalize the DC Metropolitan Police Department and deploy the National Guard in the nation’s capital is how much he wants a crackdown versus the appearance of one.

Trump’s mobilization of the military two months ago in Los Angeles seemed to fit the latter category . Maybe Trump just wants to look like he’s getting tough on crime in DC.

But with Trump’s now-repeated and historically extraordinary deployment of the Guard – and his comments about bringing this approach to other cities – he’s doing what he often does: gradually pushing the envelope and getting ever closer to what seems to be his desired outcome, which is a fuller militarization of the homeland.

That might sound overwrought to some. But it’s worth empha

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