Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday named Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Terry Cole as Washington’s “emergency police commissioner,” granting him all powers of the city’s police chief under a directive that formalises the federal government’s takeover of the Metropolitan Police Department. The order requires the department to secure Cole’s approval before issuing any directives, leaving the future role of Mayor-appointed Police Chief Pamela Smith unclear. Bondi simultaneously rescinded District policies that limited cooperation with federal immigration authorities, directing officers to share data with Immigration and Customs Enforcement and allowing arrests based solely on federal immigration warrants. The move ends Washington’s self-declared sanctuary status and aligns local policing with President Donald Trump’s nationwide immigration crackdown. The Justice Department also sent demand letters to sanctuary jurisdictions—including 12 states such as California and Colorado—warning that federal funding will be withdrawn unless they eliminate measures that impede immigration enforcement. Governors have until 19 August to outline steps toward compliance, and the department signalled it is prepared to pursue legal action against non-compliant officials. Trump invoked a 30-day emergency authority to justify the takeover, deploying roughly 800 National Guard troops and additional federal agents across the capital. Checkpoints, patrols and joint operations led to 45 arrests on Wednesday night, 29 of them for alleged immigration violations. The White House said the federal presence will remain until the president determines that “law and order has been restored.”