Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has authorized almost 2,000 National Guard soldiers and airmen to carry weapons in Washington, D.C., if their mission requires it. This authorization comes as the Trump administration intensifies its crackdown on crime in the nation’s capital, a mobilization effort that President Donald Trump has been personally involved in.
A United States defense official confirmed the authorization to Fox News, stating that “At the direction of the Secretary of Defense, JTF-DC members supporting the mission to lower the crime rate in our nation’s capital will soon be on mission with their service-issued weapons, consistent with their mission and training.”
The Washington D.C. National Guard’s interim commanding general keeps the power to make any necessary force posture adjustments while working with the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police and other federal law enforcement partners. Even with the new authorization for arming the troops, they will not have the authority to make arrests.
DC’s National Guard is now armed against its citizens
They are, however, under orders to temporarily detain individuals if it is necessary before transferring them to law enforcement as soon as possible. Arming the military, national guard or not, is a strange thing to do in a city like D.C. The decision to arm the National Guard is part of a broader federal effort to combat crime in Washington D.C. President Trump has been a vocal supporter of this crackdown, meeting with law enforcement and National Guard personnel on the front lines.
During a meeting, the president expressed his gratitude and told the personnel “We want to make this absolutely perfect. It’s our capital. And, I guess it used to be many years ago, safe, but it’s certainly not had a, a very good run. And you got to be strong. You got to be tough. You got to do your job. Whatever it takes to do your job, you got to do your job.”
Because Subway sandwiches and free speech are so dangerous. They will end up killing people.
— Jeff (Gutenberg Parenthesis) Jarvis (@jeffjarvis) August 22, 2025
Hegseth authorizes National Guard to carry weapons in D.C. deployment https://t.co/BFgeUAWooN
The federal crackdown has happened at the same time as a notable decrease in crime. The Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police Department has confirmed that for over a week, there has not been a homicide in the city. The Metropolitan Police Department’s 2025 Year-to-Date Crime Comparison report indicates a significant drop in violent crime, which has decreased by twenty-seven percent since 2024. Homicides have seen a twelve percent decrease in the same period. Overall, the city has experienced an eight percent dip in crime over the last year, according to the Metropolitan Police Department’s report.
