President Donald Trump spent Friday, August 22, 2025, on a whirlwind tour of Washington, D.C., mixing public appearances with a show of force as his administration’s federal crackdown on crime in the capital entered its third week. Against a backdrop of National Guard troops stationed at key intersections and federal agents conducting high-profile arrests, Trump visited a gift shop near the White House, stopped by the Kennedy Center, and returned to the Oval Office to trumpet the capital’s future as a hub for international sporting events.
"We have a lot of fun. We’re fixing up the whole world," Trump declared, according to the Associated Press, during his midday stop at the People’s House exhibit. But for many Washingtonians, the president’s upbeat tone clashed with the tense atmosphere gripping the city. With roughly 2,000 National Guard troops deployed and 76 arrests reported the previous evening alone, the nation’s capital has felt anything but festive.
The Pentagon confirmed that National Guard troops would soon begin carrying weapons as part of the ongoing effort to curb crime in the city. Trump, meanwhile, assured visitors, "We are going to make D.C. totally safe. When people come from Iowa, Indiana, all of the beautiful places, and they come, they’re not going to go home in a body bag. They’re not going home in a coffin, and it’s very safe right now." Yet, according to reports from The Daily Beast, many residents and visitors still feel uneasy, concerned not only about the heightened security presence but also about the administration’s rhetoric, which some say amplifies negative stereotypes about urban crime and homelessness.
The crackdown, which began after a string of violent incidents—including the beating of former Department of Government Efficiency staffer Edward Coristine—has resulted in more than 550 arrests since August 7, 2025, according to Fox News Digital. The Department of Homeland Security highlighted the apprehension of five illegal migrants with prior convictions for serious crimes such as rape, child molestation, assault, and robbery with a deadly weapon. "Secretary Noem unleashed the U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) to target the worst of the worst—including gang members, murderers, pedophiles, terrorists, and rapists," said DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin to Fox News Digital. She added, "Under President Trump and Secretary Noem, DHS has arrested more than 359,000 illegal aliens and removed more than 332,000."
The five individuals named—David Pineda-Medrano (Guatemala), Junior Alexi Medina-Fuentes (Honduras), Ja Mi (Thailand), Jorge Andres Garcia-Celis (Mexico), and Leonardo Varela-Lopez (Mexico)—were all arrested in the capital as part of the ongoing sweep. McLaughlin emphasized, "The facts are ICE is targeting the worst of the worst—including murderers, MS-13 gang members, pedophiles, and rapists. Seventy percent of ICE arrests are of criminal illegal aliens who have been convicted or have pending charges in the U.S."
Trump declared a crime emergency in the city on August 11, 2025, and has since made public safety a central theme of his administration’s messaging. During his Friday tour, he repeatedly praised the National Guard’s role in restoring order, citing a week without homicides as evidence of progress. "The National Guard’s presence in the nation’s capital has restored order," Trump told reporters, according to The Daily Beast, and insisted that residents had "lived in fear for years" before the intervention. However, crime data reveals that similar stretches without homicides occurred earlier in the year, even before the federal deployment. Crime in D.C. had risen sharply in 2023 but has since declined, with homicides and carjackings returning closer to pre-pandemic levels, The Daily Beast noted.
Despite these statistics, Trump has portrayed Washington as uniquely dangerous, a characterization that critics say is exaggerated and politically motivated. By law, federal control of Washington’s police force cannot extend past 30 days without congressional approval. Trump, however, suggested that a national emergency declaration would allow him to keep troops in the city "as long as I want." This assertion has fueled debate over the administration’s approach, with some warning that the president’s claims about crime rates and threats of indefinite military presence undermine both local autonomy and public trust.
During his Oval Office meeting with FIFA President Gianni Infantino, Trump shifted focus momentarily from law enforcement to sports diplomacy, announcing that the Kennedy Center would host the draw for the 2026 World Cup, which will be played in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. The former owner of the New Jersey Generals football team, Trump has embraced his role as a promoter of major sporting events, also touting the upcoming 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. "I just left the Kennedy Center. We’re spending a lot of money wisely and making it really beautiful. It’s going to be beautiful again. It’s like Washington, D.C.," he remarked, highlighting planned renovations that include new marble and a change in the color of the center’s iconic columns from gold to white.
Trump has not limited his ambitions to public buildings. He joked about renaming the Kennedy Center the "Trump Kennedy Center"—"We’re not prepared to do that quite yet. Maybe in a week or so," he deadpanned to reporters. The president also announced plans to renovate the bathroom attached to the Lincoln Bedroom at the White House, last updated in 2005, and floated the idea of refurbishing the Old Executive Office Building. The White House itself has seen extensive changes during his tenure, from gold-accented decor in the Oval Office to new patio seating and towering flagpoles on the lawn, with a ballroom promised for the future.
While Trump’s supporters point to the arrest of violent offenders and a visible reduction in certain crime categories as evidence of success, critics argue that the administration’s narrative overstates the dangers and downplays the complex social issues underlying urban crime. The president has hinted at expanding his crackdown to other major cities, notably Chicago, which he called "a mess," and suggested that New York and Los Angeles could be next. "We’re going to make our cities very, very safe. Chicago’s a mess," Trump told Fox News Digital, vowing to "straighten out" public safety issues there and criticizing local leadership. He asserted, without providing specifics, that some Democratic officials were privately asking for federal intervention.
As the crackdown in Washington continues, the legal and political battles over federal authority and local governance are likely to intensify. For now, the capital remains under heightened security, its streets patrolled by troops and its future as a model for Trump’s law-and-order strategy hanging in the balance. The president, for his part, seems determined to leave his mark—on the city’s buildings, its public spaces, and, perhaps most of all, its sense of safety.
