In the days since declaring a " crime emergency " in Washington, D.C., President Trump has spoken repeatedly of extending federal control over the city, even as it fights back with protests and legal challenges.

Trump took control of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and deployed D.C.'s National Guard last week after a former DOGE staffer was injured in an attempted carjacking. Trump has cited "out of control" crime, despite the fact that city data shows violent crime is at a 30-year low .

The 1973 Home Rule Act gives the president command of D.C.'s National Guard. It also allows him to use local police for federal purposes during emergencies — but only for up to 30 days without authorization from Congress, which is on recess until early September.

"We're going to do

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