President Donald Trump stated he may declare a national emergency to maintain control over Washington, D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) if Congress does not agree to extend the current federalization plan. Speaking at the Kennedy Center in Washington, Trump emphasized that he has the authority to keep control indefinitely through such a declaration. Under the current arrangement, the federal government assumed control of the MPD for a 30-day period beginning Monday.
When asked by Daily Signal White House reporter Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell whether he was engaging Congress about an extension or if 30 days would suffice, Trump responded, “Well, if it’s a national emergency, we can do it without Congress. But we expect to be before Congress very quickly. And again, we think the Democrats will not do anything to stop crime, but we think the Republicans will do it almost unanimously. So we’re going to need a crime bill. That we’re going to be putting in, and it’s going to pertain initially to DC. We’re going to use it as a very positive example,” Trump added that his administration would seek “long-term extensions” to the limit, stating, “You can’t have 30 days. We’re going to do this very quickly, but we’re going to want extensions. I don’t want to call a national emergency, but if I have to, I will.”
