It’s not every day you see Washington, D.C.’s Democratic mayor thanking Donald Trump. But that’s exactly what happened this week when Mayor Muriel Bowser, who only weeks ago decried the federal takeover of her city’s police department, publicly admitted that the president’s crime crackdown is working—and working in dramatic fashion.
Speaking at a Wednesday press conference, Bowser praised the surge of federal officers and National Guard troops that Trump deployed after declaring a “public safety emergency” in the capital on August 11.
“We greatly appreciate the surge of officers that enhance what MPD has been able to do in this city,” Bowser said. The proof? A staggering 87 percent drop in carjackings during the first 20 days of the operation.
She didn’t stop there. Robberies are down 42 percent. Gun crimes, homicides, and overall violent crime are all in sharp decline. Since the surge began, more than 1,170 arrests have been made—including gang members and dozens of illegal aliens. Just one night this week, 84 suspects were taken into custody, 40 of them unlawfully in the country.
The turnaround is undeniable. In a city that just last year saw carjackings spiral out of control—many of them committed by teenagers, some even in broad daylight—the streets are suddenly safer. As Bowser herself admitted, “when carjackings go down, when the use of gun goes down, when homicide or robbery go down, neighborhoods feel safer and are safer.”
The politics, however, are as fascinating as the numbers. Bowser initially blasted Trump’s federal intervention, using it to re-up her call for D.C. statehood and accusing the White House of overreach.
Trump, never one to miss a chance to swing back, warned her bluntly: “Mayor Bowser better get her act straight or she won’t be mayor [for] very long. We’ll take it over with the federal government and run it like it’s supposed to be run.” He even mocked D.C.’s infestation problem, promising to root out both the rats in the alleys and the crime in the streets.
Now, under pressure from plunging crime stats and undeniable public approval—more than half of voters (54 percent, according to Harvard CAPS/Harris) support Trump’s emergency declaration—Bowser has pivoted from critic to reluctant admirer.
That’s the irony here: Trump is doing what D.C.’s leadership refused to do for years. He declared crime a crisis, surged manpower, cracked down on gangs and illegal alien offenders, and in less than a month delivered the results residents had been begging for.
