While federalizing the local police and deploying the National Guard in Washington, D.C., President Donald Trump has suggested he could flex his authority to fight violent crime elsewhere.
“We have other cities also that are bad, very bad,” the president said during an Aug. 11 press conference.
He listed Chicago, New York City, Los Angeles, Oakland, and Baltimore among the cities of concern.
Although homicide and other violent crimes have recently dipped across America, the numbers from big cities are still high—in some cases, higher than they were before surges one to two decades ago.
Trump’s power to deploy the National Guard outside the nation’s capital is also under debate. A federal judge is deciding whether his deployment of troops to Los Angeles was lawful.
Here is what you should know.
The President’s Powers
Trump federalized D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department after declaring a crime emergency.
He did so under Section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, which lets him control the district’s police for up to 30 days without Congressional authorization.
He wants Congress to extend that power, suggesting a national emergency declaration could be a means of sidestepping the legislature if it does not act.
Please come to Baltimore. Slap NO MOORE down!