National Guard deployed to combat 'crime emergency' in DC seen picking up trash outside White House

WASHINGTON, DC: When President Donald Trump promised to send in the National Guard to deal with “complete and total lawlessness” in Washington, DC, most people probably pictured armed patrols, not soldiers in camo hauling garbage bags and planting flowers.

But that’s exactly what appeared to be happening in the nation’s capital this week.

DC National Guard soldiers pick up trash, plant flowers outside White House

Over the weekend, the DC National Guard proudly shared a video of troops dragging trash bags and scrubbing benches. On Tuesday, August 26, soldiers in full camouflage gear were spotted in Lafayette Park, right outside the White House, wearing bright orange vests and topping the scene with freshly planted yellow marigolds as they picked up litter.

According to officials, the Guard isn’t just on security duty. They’re on a “beautification and restoration mission” across Lafayette Square, the National Mall, and the Tidal Basin.

“This week, Soldiers and Airmen conducted site surveys in coordination with federal and local partners to begin community restoration projects,” the DC National Guard posted on X.

So far, 2,234 active guardsmen are on duty in DC—929 from the local DC Guard and another 1,305 brought in from Louisiana, Mississippi, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, and West Virginia, according to the Joint Task Force–DC Office.

Trump expands National Guard deployment in anti-crime and immigration crackdown

Trump insists the Guard is there to rein in chaos, even though crime rates in DC hit a 30-year low earlier this year. Still, the Guard cleanup is “part of an overarching plan that includes an estimated 40 or more tasks being conducted across the District,” DC News Now reported.

This isn’t just about DC. The president is reportedly preparing to mobilize as many as 1,700 National Guard troops across 19 states to support his anti-crime and immigration crackdown. 

In the meantime, arrests are piling up. Since Trump pledged to tackle crime earlier this month, more than 1,000 people have been arrested in the capital alone. Many of them are suspected illegal immigrants, according to the White House.

But not everyone is on board with the rollout. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui blasted the federal government’s tactics from the bench, calling them “not legally acceptable.”

“We don’t just charge people criminally, throw them in the jail for a few weeks, and then bring them in here and say, ‘Oops, my bad,’” Faruqui said. “I have never ever in my life seen something close to the illegality of this search.”

Locals voice mixed reactions as Trump’s crime and immigration crackdown intensifies

Reactions on the ground are mixed at best. One National Guard member told The Washington Post, “I think it’s nice, as a DC resident. But there are different things we could be doing.”

In Southeast DC, where the city recorded its first homicide in nearly two weeks, some were skeptical of the move. Ray, 77, told NBC News that police only show up “when something like that happens.” He added that he hadn’t noticed much change since Trump’s crackdown began and doesn’t feel any safer.

But Brian Williams, 56, said he’s fine with the extra boots on the ground. “I really don’t have a problem with police presence," he told the outlet. "It’s much-needed in certain neighborhoods of the district. Not all of them are needed, but some of them are needed.” Still, he added, “The ones that are needed, you don’t see the presence in there.”

For immigrant-heavy neighborhoods, the tension is worse. A resident in one of DC’s largest Latin communities told the BBC that immigration raids have surged since Trump’s crackdown began on August 7.

“People are walking around scared [...] I’ve never seen the streets so empty,” the resident said.

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