It's the Brian Laird Show on WNYC.

I'm Matt Katz, filling in for Brian today.

Now we'll talk about President Trump's recent move to take control of the D.C.

Police Department and deploy the National Guard and the Capitol over the objections of local officials and despite the fact that violent crime in that city has dropped sharply.

Homicides down more than 30 percent since last year. Armed carjackings are down more than 50 percent, yet Trump has declared a, quote, crime emergency and cited outdated

statistics to justify federal intervention. In a recent edition of the Atlantic's Daily newsletter,

David Graham makes clear that this isn't just a PR stunt or campaign season flex. It's a raw

assertion of presidential power, one that overrides the will of local voters

and treats a U.S. city like a stage set. Graham argues that this fits into a disturbing pattern.

Trump has repeatedly used the military as a political prop, and now he's showing how easily that

spectacle can become a blueprint for authoritarian control.

David Graham is a staff writer at the Atlantic, author of the Atlantic Daily newsletter, and author of The Project,

how Project 2025 is reshaping America. He joins us now to talk about what this federal takeover could

mean for D.C. residents, for Democratic norms,

and for Trump's broad a strategy of forcing his opponents into impossible choices.

Hi, David. Welcome back to WM.N.Y.C. Oh, thank you for having me.

Listeners, what do you make of President Trump's decision to take control of the D.C.

Police Department and deploy the National

Guard in the Capitol. Do you live in D.C.? Do you live in another city where crime or the

perception of crime is shaping politics? Give us a buzz. 212-433 WNYC. 212-433-9692. David, what exactly did Trump announce about the D.C. police and the National Guard?

We keep saying takeover.

What are the details of it?

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