WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered National Guard troops to start carrying firearms while patrolling the streets of Washington for President Donald Trump’s law enforcement crackdown, the Pentagon said Friday.

The Defense Department didn’t offer any other details about the new development or why it was needed. Hegseth referred to it as “common sense” on social media.

No troops have been spotted yet with firearms around the city in the hours after the announcement. The decision is an escalation in the Republican administration's intervention in the nation's capital and comes as nearly 2,000 National Guard members have been stationed in the heavily Democratic city.

Some local officials were harshly critical, with D.C. Council Member Charles Allen saying Trump's ac

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