National Guard troops deployed to the US capital under the orders of President Donald Trump have begun carrying firearms while on patrol, the military confirmed on Sunday.
“Starting the late evening of August 24, 2025, Joint Task Force–DC service members began carrying their service-issued weapon,” the unit said in a statement.
Officials told Reuters the troops are carrying either M17 pistols or M4 rifles. According to the military, force is authorised “only as a last resort and solely in response to an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm.”
The announcement came as Trump again claimed that Washington, DC had become plagued by violence, though official statistics show crime is down. On his Truth Social platform, he declared that there is “NO CRIME AND NO MURDER IN DC!”
He added that Baltimore might be next to see federal troops, describing it as “crime-ridden” and “out of control.” Maryland Governor Wes Moore invited Trump to visit the city, but the president declined, saying he would wait until Moore had “cleaned up this Crime disaster.”
Baltimore’s mayor, Brandon Scott, noted the city recorded its lowest homicide count in more than 50 years this year, with gun violence down double digits in July compared with last year.
In Washington, thousands of National Guard members and federal law enforcement officers now patrol the streets, a move that has triggered both protests and unease among residents. Demonstrators marched with signs reading “Free DC” along the U Street corridor on Saturday.
Trump has also received support from some Republican governors, who have sent their states’ National Guard contingents to the capital.
Because Washington, DC is not a state, federal law allows the president to take control of policing in the district for up to 30 days. This long-standing legal gap has fueled renewed calls for DC statehood, though Democrats did not advance the effort after passing a statehood bill through the House in 2020.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker rejected Trump’s suggestion that Chicago could also see troops deployed.
The National Guard is a reserve force that can be activated to handle domestic emergencies, overseas combat, and anti-drug operations. Its armed presence in the capital underscores the growing tension between Trump’s administration and Democratic leaders over policing, public safety, and the balance of power.
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