Wyoming’s all-Republican congressional delegation on Tuesday voiced its support for President Donald Trump’s decision to mobilize federal troops in Washington D.C.
Trump on Monday announced he would deploy the National Guard on the ground in the nation’s capital and seize control of its police force to push back against what he said was a surge in criminal activity.
The move follows the assault of a former Department of Government Efficiency staffer at the hands of several young or juvenile assailants during an attempted carjacking, according to D.C. Metropolitan police.
“If D.C. doesn’t get its act together, and quickly, we will have no choice but to take Federal control of the City, and run this City how it should be run, and put criminals on notice that they’re not going to get away with it anymore,” Trump wrote via Truth Social in response to the attack.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday added authorities would also focus on mitigating homelessness in D.C., which she said had been purposefully overlooked by the district’s leadership.
"Homeless shelters offered, addiction and mental health services, or jail, if they refuse, are the options on the table right now,” she said of the alternatives presented to homeless individuals.
“Lawlessness and Chaos”
Each member of Wyoming’s delegation said in statements shared with Cowboy State Daily that they support Trump’s decision, adding that crime has become a major problem in Washington.
Sen. John Barrasso, the Senate’s second ranked Republican, said the president’s move shows he will no longer tolerate crime going unchecked under D.C.’s Democratic leadership.
“Americans deserve to feel safe,” the senator wrote via email. “For many people in Democrat-run cities like Washington D.C. and Los Angeles, safety feels out of reach. Democrat leaders would rather coddle criminals than prosecute them. President Trump and Republicans are committed to public safety and enforcing the law.”
Rep. Harriet Hageman, the Cowboy State’s lone representative, echoed this sentiment, arguing Trump has full right as the commander in chief to take control of Washington at any time.
"Washington, D.C. is not a state, it is a federal district, established by the Constitution to serve as the seat of our national government,” she wrote. “The President of the United States has both the authority and the responsibility to ensure order and security within that district, especially when local leadership fails to do so.”
“President Trump has made it clear that lawlessness and chaos will not be tolerated in our nation's capital or in any American city,” she added. “His decision to call in members of the National Guard to Washington, D.C., reflects his commitment to restoring order, protecting innocent citizens, and ensuring that criminals no longer run the streets."
Sen. Cynthia Lummis, highlighted her own experience with crime in Washington and cheered the president for protecting her constituents who visit the nation’s capital.
“Anyone who has spent time in Washington DC during these past few years has seen it become dangerous, messy, and chaotic,” she wrote. “Families visiting from Wyoming and across the country should be able to safely come tour our capital and its attractions without worrying about carjackings, shootings, robberies, or harassment. I fully support President Trump's actions on this and believe it's positive news for those of us who believe in law and order in this country."
Serious Problem or Overblown?
Critics of Trump’s decision argue, however, that Washington, D.C.,crime had been declining before he decided to intervene.
The Department of Justice in January announced violent crime in D.C. had reached a 30-year low. Then-U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves touted his crackdown on drug trafficking gangs as a major contributing factor.
“The strategy this Office began to employ shortly after I came into this role has been to work with our law enforcement partners to focus on the drivers of violence - those gangs or crews of people who are dealing drugs, protecting turf, committing carjackings and other robberies, all while armed,” Graves wrote where? in a statement? at the time. “It takes time to develop these investigations and prosecutions, but this is the fruit of that labor - a reduction in the violent crime - that D.C. is now seeing.”
The FBI last week also released information showing homicides in D.C. have steadily fallen since reaching a peak of 33 in 2023.
Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser responded to Trump’s federalization by claiming it is further proof D.C. should be admitted to the union.
“We know that access to our democracy is tenuous,” she said during a press conference. “That is why you have heard me and many, many Washingtonians before me advocate for full statehood for the District of Columbia.”
The White House pushed back, however, writing in a press release that Washington, D.C., has long needed to clean up its act.
“Washington, D.C. should be a symbol of pride and patriotism for the American people — and a safe location for tourists, residents, and public servants,” it wrote. “Unfortunately, while Fake News journalists and politicians go out of their way to claim otherwise, the reality is that our nation’s capital is anything but safe.”
It is the second time this year Trump has deployed federal troops to a city controlled by a Democratic majority since he sent the National Guard to Los Angeles in June to quell widespread anti-immigration enforcement riots.
Wyoming’s delegation also toed the party line in supporting that decision, taking aim at Democratic leaders like California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., for failing to take a stronger stance against the riots.
Jackson Walker can be reached at: Walker@CowboyStateDaily.com
