Hundreds of members of the Western Virginia National Guard in the United States will be mobilized to Washington, the country’s capital, to join the troop mobilized by President Donald Trump earlier this week. The US President decreed an emergency situation in the US capital on the 11th with the objective of “fighting the crime and delivering the city of the homeless population.”
Sending the Western Virginia troops, announced on Saturday, 16, occurs as protesters in Washington reject the Federal Police and the National Guard troops that spread throughout the historically Democratic city. The president’s decree fell felling in the local police and mobilized about 800 members of the Columbia District National Guard.
By adding external troops to the National Guard and to federal police, Trump starts even more rigid control over the city. It is a measure that increases the president’s power over the capital under the justification of crime and the lack of housing, although municipal authorities have observed that violent crimes are lower than during the Republican’s first term.
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A protest against Trump’s intervention attracted crowds to Dupont Circle on Saturday, succeeded from a march to the White House, about 2.4 kilometers away. In the tracks taken by protesters it was possible to read phrases such as “not to the fascist taking of Washington” and “not to the military occupation.”
Trump was in his golf club located in Virginia after Friday’s summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Alaska.
Protest rejects federal agents
Morgan Taylor, one of the organizers who coordinated Saturday’s protest, said they expected to provoke a sufficient negative reaction to Trump’s actions for the government to be forced to retreat in its agenda to combat crime and immigration.
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“It’s hot, but I’m happy to be here. It’s good to see all these people here,” she said. “I don’t believe this is happening in this country right now.”
John Finnigan, 55, was riding a bicycle when he came across the protest in downtown Washington. The real estate construction manager, who has lived in the capital 27 years, stated that Trump’s measures are “ridiculous” because crime is falling.
“I hope some mayors and residents will take the initiative and try to make it difficult for it to happen in other cities,” Finnigan said.
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Jamie Dickstein, a 24 -year -old teacher, said she was “very uncomfortable and worried” about the safety of her students, given the presence of “unidentified police of all kinds” that now wandeHs for Washington and holds people.
Dickstein said he attended protest with friends and relatives to “avoid a continuous domino effect in other cities.”
Western Virginia National Guard arrives in Washington
Governor Patrick Morrisey, the West Virginia Republican, announced on Saturday that he would send a contingent of 300 to 400 guard soldiers to Washington. “West Virginia is proud to support President Trump in his effort to restore the pride and beauty of the capital of our country,” he said.
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Western Virginia’s action suggests that the government sees the need for more police after the president minimizes the need for Washington to hire more police officers.
Application of Federal Law in Washington attracts mixed reactions
Federal agents appeared in some of the busiest neighborhoods in the city. The reception was a mixture of compliments, resistance and alarms of local residents and leaders from all over the country.
The city’s leaders, who are required to cooperate with Trump’s decree under federal laws governing the local governance of the district, seek to work with the White House, although they are annoyed by the measure, which expands Trump’s powers.
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After a judicial hearing, US Secretary of Justice, Pam Bondi, issued a memorandum by instructing the Metropolitan Police Department to cooperate with the Federal Police of Immigration, regardless of any municipal law.
City officials say they are evaluating the best way to obey.
In the decree on Monday (11), Trump declared a state of emergency because of the “failure of the municipal government to maintain public order”. He said this prevented the “federal government’s ability to operate efficiently to meet the broader interests of the nation without fear that our workers will be subjected to unbridled violence.”
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In a letter to city dwellers, Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, wrote that “our limited self -government has never faced the kind of test we are facing now.”
She added that if Washington residents come together, “we will show the whole nation what it means to fight for American democracy – even when we don’t have full access to it.”
