(NewsNation) — President Donald Trump announced Thursday he will join National Guard troops and police on patrol in Washington, D.C., as federal forces continue efforts to “restore order” in the nation’s capital.
Trump revealed the plan during a radio interview Thursday morning, saying he would be “going out tonight” with police and military personnel.
“I’m going to be going out tonight, I think, with the police and with the military, of course. So we’re going to do a job,” Trump told conservative radio host Todd Starnes on his show. “The National Guard is great. They’ve done a fantastic job.”
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The announcement comes as nearly 2,000 National Guard troops remain deployed in Washington following the president’s executive order declaring a crime emergency despite statistics showing violent crime has declined in the city.
The D.C. National Guard, joined by units from West Virginia, South Carolina, Ohio, Mississippi, Louisiana and Tennessee, has been supporting local and federal law enforcement efforts.
Vice President JD Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller met with National Guard troops at Union Station on Wednesday to thank them for their work. The officials were greeted with protests at the transportation hub, which Miller mocked.
The planned presidential patrol would mark an unusual public appearance reminiscent of Trump’s controversial walk to St. John’s Church during his first term. However, specific details about locations and security arrangements have not been disclosed.
Joint Task Force-DC currently has 1,997 soldiers and airmen mobilized, providing a visible presence at metro stations including Foggy Bottom, Smithsonian, Eastern Market and other locations throughout the district. The guardsmen are authorized to carry weapons depending on mission requirements and operate under civilian law enforcement authority.
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White House officials said earlier Thursday that there had been more than 600 total arrests made since federal officers were deployed around the city on Aug. 7. Of those, 251 were arrests of immigrants in the country illegally, the White House said.
Critics of Trump’s aggressive crackdown across D.C. have pointed to statistics that show the city’s violent crime rate fell in 2024 and is down again in 2025. Also, some local residents have expressed their disapproval, protesting federal officers stationed in their neighborhoods.
A Washington Post-Schar School poll of 604 D.C. residents published Wednesday found 65% do not think Trump’s actions will make the city safer. Roughly 80% of residents said they opposed Trump’s executive order to federalize the city’s police department.
But White House officials have been adamant that statistics do not accurately capture the state of crime and decay in the nation’s capital.
NewsNation partner The Hill contributed to this report.
