Mayor Muriel Bowser gave some credit to President Trump today, acknowledging that the surge of federal law enforcement to DC was working to cut crime.
“We greatly appreciate the surge of officers that enhance what MPD has been able to do in this city,” the mayor, a Democrat, told reporters about the expansion of federal law enforcement and its partnership with the Metropolitan Police Department.
Carjackings, she said, were the “most troubling” crime that plagued D.C. in 2023 and they have decreased in recent years. Bowser said that in the 20 days since the federal takeover, there has been an 87% drop in carjackings compared to the same period last year. The data cited also showed a 15% fall in crime overall in the district during that same period last year.
“We know that when carjackings go down, when use of gun goes down, when homicide or robbery go down, neighborhoods feel safer and are safer, so this surge has been important to us,” said Bowser, who added that she has been personally engaged with Attorney General Pam Bondi and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles…
The mayor said that since the increase in federal law enforcement officers, there have been more stops that have resulted in the seizure of illegal guns and there has been more “accountability in the system” that “is driving down illegal behavior.”
You can see the numbers the mayor is looking at here:
DC @MayorBowser releases data showing crime down significantly during federal surge compared to last year at same time and previous 20 days. Crime down significantly in every category. Compared to 2024 Violent crime down 45% Carjacking down 87% Overall down 15%. @nbcwashington pic.twitter.com/ywY5i7jqEa
— Mark Segraves (@SegravesNBC4) August 27, 2025
This shows a 45% decline in violent crime overall with homicide down 38%, sexual assault down 44% and robbery down 62%. And as mentioned by the mayor, carjacking is down 87%.
Mayor Bowser’s response wasn’t all positive though. She singled out ICE in particular for criticism.
Bowser, however, strongly rebuked the Trump administration’s deployment of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and National Guard troops in the city. “What we know is not working is a break in trust between police and community, especially with new federal partners in our community. We know having masked ICE agents in the community has not worked, and national guards from other states has not been an efficient use of those resources,” she said.
Two points on this. First, the increased immigration operations by ICE are not limited to DC. They happened in LA earlier and would be happening in DC regardless of the federalization of the police force. Second, whether the National Guard troops are being used efficiently is not her problem. Those folks were never under her control and if all they do is stand around the mall to discourage crime and that’s what Trump wants them to do, that’s all they need to do.
Apparently, all of this was discussed in a conversation with the president sometime today.
Mayor Muriel Bowser says she spoke with President Trump this afternoon: “I was reminded that the President’s interest in cities predates his time in office, and his knowledge of DC had significantly increased from the first tim he was in the White House.“ pic.twitter.com/R5dyxvtL0z
— Maeve Sheehey (@MaeveSheehey) August 27, 2025
In any case, Mayor Bowser’s willingness to give Trump any credit at all set off some local officials.
“We should not, as the District of Columbia, be giving people the impression that this is a good thing, that we are OK with it, that it is helping the city. It is not doing any of those thing,” said At-Large Councilmember Robert White Jr., a Democrat, in a video posted on X. “I am not OK with this. The average resident is not OK with this. D.C. residents, D.C. voters, are not OK with this.”
Councilmember White’s video is here. Other councilmembers also wanted to focus on saying bad things about Trump.
DC is under siege by our own fed govt, w/ armed military patrolling our streets & masked agents scooping up neighbors & taking them away. Our residents are afraid, hesitant to go out & to work, angry that our limited autonomy is being eroded. There is nothing welcome about this. https://t.co/7a5IWkJgQg
— Brianne K. Nadeau (@BrianneKNadeau) August 27, 2025
My take is that Mayor Bowser is playing this pretty smart. If she goes all out against Trump now she a) has nowhere else to go and b) looks like she’s dismissing the fact that violent crime has almost dropped by half in a matter of weeks. Denial of reality is not a strong selling point. Instead she’s praising the good and also criticizing the bad which makes her harder to tune out. No comments from Trump about this press conference so far. That’s probably the best case for Bowser at this point.
Here’s a bit of Bowser’s presentation.
DC Mayor Bowser Praises Trump’s Federal Surge For Reducing Crime Rate
“We greatly appreciate the surge of officers that enhance what MPD has been able to do in this city.”
Mayor Muriel Bowser says crime rates have decreased significantly since @POTUS‘ recent deployment of the… pic.twitter.com/e8aWVlpa9Z
— The Daily Signal (@DailySignal) August 27, 2025
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