Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said crime in the District has fallen sharply since President Donald Trump placed the city’s police force under temporary federal control and dispatched National Guard troops on 7 August. Bowser cited Metropolitan Police Department data showing carjackings down 87 percent from the same period a year earlier and an estimated 15 percent drop in overall crime, adding that the city has gone nearly two weeks without a homicide. Roughly 800 Guard members have been authorised, with several hundred on the streets at any one time to free local officers for patrols and gun-crime investigations. “When carjackings, gun use and robberies go down, neighbourhoods feel safer and are safer,” Bowser told reporters, calling the 30-day federal surge “important to us.” The Democratic mayor, who had earlier criticised federal intervention, said she wants to resume full local control once the initial order expires but acknowledged the short-term gains. Some D.C. Council members and civil-liberties groups argue the takeover is unnecessary and erodes home-rule authority, while the administration maintains it is responding to an emergency. Vice President JD Vance defended the operation in media appearances and urged cities such as Chicago and Milwaukee to request similar assistance if local leaders cannot curb violence. The Washington Times reported that Trump’s job-approval rating has risen to 45 percent in August from 40 percent in July amid the crime-reduction numbers.