OAN Staff Blake Wolf
12:09 PM – Tuesday, August 12, 2025
Attorney General Pam Bondi and Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser, along with several other high-ranking officials, held a meeting to discuss President Donald Trump’s executive order federalizing the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
On Monday, President Trump ordered a temporary federal takeover of the MPD, while also bringing in the National Guard to fight violent crime in the nation’s capital perpetrated by “violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals, roving mobs of wild youth, drugged-out maniacs and homeless people.”
“I just concluded a productive meeting with DC @MayorBowser at the Department of Justice. We agreed that there is nothing more important than keeping residents and tourists in Washington, D.C. safe from deadly crime,” Bondi wrote in a Tuesday X post.
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“At President Trump’s direction, @TheJusticeDept will work closely with D.C. city government and @DCPoliceDept to make Washington, D.C. safe again,” Bondi added.
Bondi confirmed Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, FBI Director Kash Patel, Director of the United States Marshals Service Gadyaces Serralta, Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Terry Cole, and U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro were also in attendance for the meeting.
After the meeting, Bowser told reporters that she is “focused on the federal surge and how to make the most of the additional officer support that we have.”
“We have the best in the business and [Police Chief] Pamela Smith to lead that effort, and to make sure that the men and women who are coming from federal law enforcement are being well used,” she added.
Prior to the meeting, Bowser labeled President Trump’s decision as “unsettling and unprecedented,” while calling for “DC statehood.”
“DC is unique. While we pay taxes and uphold the responsibilities of citizenship, we’re not a state. We don’t control the DC National Guard and we don’t have senators or full autonomy. That’s why you’ve heard me and many other Washingtonians advocate for DC statehood,” Bowser wrote in a Monday X post.
“Here’s where we stand after today’s announcement: we will follow the law, work with federal officials, and continue the work we do every single day to keep DC safe, beautiful, and the best city in the world,” Bowser added.
Bowser went on to acknowledge Trump’s authority to temporarily federalize the MPD under the Home Rule Act, while noting that the city’s police officers still report to her.
“I’m going to work every day to make sure it’s not a complete disaster. Let me put it that way,” she stated. “And while this action today is unsettling and unprecedented, I can’t say that given some of the rhetoric of the past that we’re totally surprised.”
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