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Some National Guard units deployed to the nation’s capital at President Donald Trump’s direction began carrying firearms Sunday, marking an escalation in his extraordinary use of military forces to police American streets and signaling possible expansions to other Democratic-led cities.
A Defense Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said only certain units on patrol missions would be armed, some with handguns and others with rifles, and all operating under strict rules of engagement. An Associated Press photographer observed South Carolina National Guard troops carrying holstered pistols outside Union Station.
A joint task force overseeing security in Washington said rules permit force “only as a last resort and solely in response to an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm.” The Pentagon official said troops assigned to administrative or transport duties will remain unarmed.
Trump has already federalized Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department and surged thousands of Guard troops and federal officers into the district, a move that has drawn scattered street protests and criticism from local leaders. He has threatened to replicate the deployments in Baltimore, Chicago and New York.
On Sunday, Trump rejected an invitation from Maryland Gov. Wes Moore to walk Baltimore’s streets together, instead accusing Moore of “fudging” crime data and vowing to send in troops if necessary. Baltimore’s homicide count fell 24% last year, and overall violent crime is down nearly 8% in 2024, according to police statistics.
“The president is spending all of his time talking about me. I’m spending my time talking about the people I serve,” Moore said on CBS’s Face the Nation. He called Trump’s rhetoric “performative” and accused him of ignoring real progress.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said Sunday his city “doesn’t need a military occupation” and vowed to sue to block a federal deployment. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker accused Trump of “attempting to manufacture a crisis” and said no emergency exists to justify troops on Chicago’s streets.
Civil rights leaders framed the issue as racially charged. The Rev. Al Sharpton told a congregation at Howard University that the deployments target “majority-minority cities with Black mayors,” calling the operation “laced with bigotry and racism.”
The White House has pointed to Trump’s comments that Chicago would likely be the next target, followed by New York. The Washington Post reported Saturday the Pentagon has already drafted contingency plans for a Chicago deployment, potentially including active-duty forces.
Videos of arrests and patrols have circulated on social media, while some parts of Washington remained unusually quiet over the weekend as Guard members took up posts at major intersections.
“This is not about crime. This is about profiling us,” Sharpton said. “And it’s a civil rights issue, a race issue, and an issue of D.C. statehood.”
