What's really behind Trump's crime crackdown?
Americast
BBC
4.2 • 2.8K Ratings
🗓️ 13 August 2025
⏱️ 26 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
What is really behind Donald Trump’s decision to send the National Guard into Washington DC, and what could it mean for other states in America?
As troops arrive into DC, after Trump said the deployment was necessary to bring down crime and homelessness, Sarah and Justin talk about why the US president has made the announcement now.
We also discuss crime rates, particularly as his opponents say the figures are trending downward in DC, and how this deployment might expand to other Democratic cities.
Plus, we answer your questions on whether this is just a distraction technique to “flood the zone” away from the Epstein files.
HOSTS: • Sarah Smith, North America Editor • Justin Webb, Radio 4 Presenter
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This episode was made by George Dabby with Grace Reeve and Rufus Gray. The technical producer was Michael Regaard. The series producer is Purvee Pattni. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, Podcasts. |
| 0:04.8 | Donald Trump has sent troops onto the streets of America yet again. |
| 0:09.0 | Here in Washington, D.C., the National Guard, are lining them all. |
| 0:12.4 | They're visible on the streets, ready to take on what he says is a dangerous crime wave. |
| 0:17.8 | Is it? Is he allowed to do this? Will he do it in other cities? That's what we'll be |
| 0:22.4 | talking about today. Welcome to AmeriCast. Americaast from BBC News. God spared my life for a reason. |
| 0:34.1 | Only when it is dark enough can you see the stars. |
| 0:38.3 | A star is born, Elon. |
| 0:40.3 | I'm not just Maga. I'm dark Gothic Maga. |
| 0:43.3 | This is what happens when the machine comes after you. |
| 0:47.3 | I'm terrified for this country and I'm so hurt that America let this happen. |
| 0:51.3 | I think that we just witnessed the greatest political comeback in the history of the United States of America. |
| 1:06.0 | Hello, it's Sarah here at the Ground Zero of American Politics in Washington, D.C. And it's Justin, in what is still the worldwide headquarters of AmeriCast? They've been booted out of the main studio, Sarah. So I don't know whether there's some kind of coup going on. There's lots of talk of coups in Washington, D.C. But the most important one, the AmeriCast one is a sort of silent one, but anyway, we'll cope. |
| 1:32.4 | Well, it's very, very visible what's happening here, I have to say. It's the opposite of a silent coup because there are National Guard troops already on the streets of Washington. 800 National |
| 1:39.6 | Guard officers have been sent here. And you can see them up and down the mile, which I know |
| 1:44.0 | Justin is that kind of huge ceremonial strip through the centre. offices been sent here. And you can see them up and down the mile, which I know you know, Justin, |
| 1:44.9 | is that kind of huge ceremonial strip through the centre of DC where lots of the memorials |
| 1:50.8 | and the sites that tourists most want to come and see are. Well, very, very visibly, there are big |
| 1:55.2 | humvees and people in uniform patrolling around there, along with all sorts of other |
| 2:00.7 | drug enforcement agency |
| 2:02.3 | officers, that kind of thing. It is very obvious what's happening on the streets. Yeah, because when |
| 2:06.2 | you say Humvees, well, two things occur to me from what you just said. Number one, the National |
... |
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