‘What’s Not To Like About That?’: Former Capitol Police Chief Tells ‘Morning Joe’ Trump DC Crackdown Is On Point

Former U.S. Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger said on Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s federal takeover of Washington, D.C., is a good move for fighting crime.

Trump deployed the National Guard and invoked Section 740 of the Home Rule Act to take federal control over the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). Manger said on “Morning Joe” that Trump’s plan can make a good “impact” on tackling crime by adding National Guardsmen to assist the MPD.

“As a former police chief, if somebody were to come to me and said ‘hey, we’re gonna bring 500,000 more law enforcement officers to assist you.’ What’s not to like about that? You can certainly make an impact on crime with that kind of surge,” Manger said, adding that “this is going to be a temporary thing.”

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Violent crime and homicide rates in Washington currently remain above pre-pandemic levels, according to Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) data. The MPD’s crime data excludes aggravated assault and felony assault without the use of weapons, despite Washington law describing them as violent offenses causing bodily injury.

The media and city officials have cited the MPD’s data to argue that the crime rate has dropped 35% since 2024. The FBI’s data has found that the number of violent offenses in the district has only dropped by 10% since 2024 and has remained slightly higher than in 2018.

In 2025 alone, an individual on a Metrobus was shot by 19-year-old Javarry Peaks in March; a gang-related shooting killed congressional intern Eric Tarpinian-Jachym near a Metro station and a suspect fatally shot two Israeli Embassy staffers outside of the Capital Jewish Museum. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) staffer Edward Coristine, also known as “Big Balls,” got severely beaten after he tried to stop a carjacking on August 5.

During a Monday press conference on the matter, U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C., Jeanine Pirro assured that Washington’s City Council’s laws would be changed to hold juvenile criminals accountable. FBI Director Kash Patel also announced that his agency will ensure that police receive all of the necessary intelligence to properly arrest violent felons.

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