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Journalism of Courage
President Donald Trump on Friday visited a US Park Police operations centre in Southeast Washington, DC, where he handed out hamburgers and pizza to National Guard troops and federal law enforcement officers deployed as part of his high-profile anti-crime initiative. “We have great hamburgers cooked by the White House, and we have pizza… I’ll eat with you and we’re going to have a little fun…” the White House quoted the President saying. “Then we’re going to get back to work and we’re going to take care of these criminals.”
Carrying a microphone, Trump thanked the officers for their work and expressed optimism about the capital’s future. “You’re incredible people. You make the country run, frankly,” Trump told the officers, according to CBS News.
“I feel very safe now, and I’m hearing people are very safe, but I know within two weeks … it’s going to be at a level that’s even far superior,” he said, as reported by NPR. Trump joked earlier in the day that he would join officers on patrol. “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,” he told NPR.
The visit came amid Trump’s controversial move to assert federal control over the DC Metropolitan Police Department, a decision that has drawn sharp criticism from local officials who argue it undermines the city’s autonomy.
According to CBS News, the Justice Department recently backed down from an attempt to appoint an emergency local police chief after DC officials filed a lawsuit. Trump has defended the intervention as necessary, dismissing local crime statistics as “phony numbers.”
The White House says more than 600 people have been arrested and dozens of homeless encampments cleared since the initiative began, NPR reported. Attorney General Pam Bondi said 630 arrests have been made and 86 illegal guns seized.
Roughly 2,000 National Guard troops from DC and Republican-led states, along with additional officers from federal agencies such as the FBI and DEA, are now stationed in the city. Trump said the capital would soon be “maxxed out in terms of beauty,” citing plans to clean graffiti, restore grass in parks and repair medians.
The effort has sparked protests. NPR reported that Vice President JD Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were booed during a photo op with Guard members at Union Station a day earlier.
Local leaders argue the crackdown is unnecessary. Washington’s mayor and other officials point to police data showing violent crime has been falling steadily. According to CBS News, violent crime is down 26 per cent this year, with robberies down per cent.
(With inputs from NPR, CBS News)
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