Scott Gurvey's Public Offerings

The tourist season in Washington, officially the “District of Columbia,” begins in April, about the time the cherry blossoms bloom. The nation’s capital is especially beautiful at that time. It is when school children from all over the nation arrive on a traditional trip to see the places they are familiar with from the news and to see the documents, faded though they may be, that were written to create the world’s first Constitutional democratic republic.

I remember my first visit as part of one of those school groups. It was thrilling. I was never assigned to a Washington newsroom during my career. But I visited frequently to interview government leaders and cover various events. I still feel emotional when standing at the Lincoln Memorial, or in front of the Vietnam War Memorial. And I still feel the weight of history when I arrive at the West Wing of the White House.

By August, it is hot in the federal city. Hot enough that, even though air conditioning was invented more than a century ago, Congress takes an extended vacation. They call it a “district work period.” The Supreme Court takes a full three months off from Washington, wrapping up their regular session at the end of June and returning on the first Monday of October. I’d complain about all this time our paid leaders are away from their desks except that, of late, it seems we are better off when they are not around to create even more havoc. Families do travel to Washington during the summer months. And it is a popular destination for foreign travelers visiting the United States.

But this year something is off. Tourism in Washington is way down. The hotels and restaurants are suffering. But the streets are still filled. Not with visitors, but with heavily armed men and women. Some are dressed in black, wearing jackets inscribed with the initiials of a smorgasboard of federal agencies. Others are in full military regalia.

This is Donald Trump’s invasion army. “I’m announcing a historic action to rescue our nation’s capital from crime, bloodshed, bedlam and squalor and worse,” Trump said at a news conference at the White House. “This is liberation day in D.C., and we’re going to take our capital back.”

Like so many of Trump’s bombastic claims, this is a lie. Violent crime in D.C. has been declining for the last year and a half, according to local police data. So far this year, robberies have dropped by 28% and overall violent crime is down 26%, as of Aug. 11. Last year, violent crime in the capital city hit its lowest level in more than 30 years, according to Trump’s own Justice Department. Washington, D.C., is not on the F.B.I.’s list of top crime cities.

What we have in Washington, D.C., is a tinhorn tough guy puffing up his chest and basking in the glory of brave military men and women who are, by law, required to salute him, call him, “Sir,” and do his bidding. It is all performance art. Show Biz. A Donald Trump production.

We see Trump’s stormtroopers greeting arrivals at Union Station, driving armored vehicles on the mall, hiding behind the pillars in the sacred space of the Lincoln Memorial, parading in front of the Washington monument, and forming a phalanx surrounding the White House. They have setup roadblocks and checkpoints in Washington streets, demanding drivers show their papers, just like armies do in Russia, North Korea, China, and other authoritarian regimes. The scenes are shocking. And sad to see.

Yes, crime is down in D.C. since the soldiers arrived. Why not? Trump is spending one million dollars a day to make his point and flooding the District certainly deters crime. The local police probably would have had the same impact if they didn’t have hundreds of officer vacancies caused by the failure of Congress to pass to the local government one billion dollars in funds already collected in taxes but not released. Why is not clear. Some reports say it is because Trump needs to create a crisis to justify his actions. Or, as other reports claim, Congress ran out of town for a summer vacation to avoid facing the Epstein files issue and left the legislation to transmit the funds to the district on the table.

Since there really isn’t much serious crime to deal with, the Trump army is spending most of their time chasing down undocumented immigrants at the checkpoints and making traffic stops. A number of delivery drivers on bikes and mopeds, most of them from Central or South America, have been detained and put into immigration detention. Around town the word is, “Don’t order food delivery, protect your Grubhub driver.” Some are picking up trash. An armored military vehicle struck an SUV and sent a family to the hospital. Our soldiers did not sign up for this duty. Nor were they trained for civilian policing. But that is not about safety. It’s about intimidation.

The District of Columbia Home Rule Act of 1973 gave residents of the capital a limited form of self-governance. The Constitution assigns control of the District to Congress. Before it, Congress and commissioners appointed by the president governed the city. Home rule gave Washington residents the power to elect a mayor, a District of Columbia Council and local neighborhood commissioners. But it also imposed extensive congressional oversight over how those officials govern the city. As a result, the federal government supervises how local officials govern just about every aspect of life in the city. This arrangement is unique in America. Other cities derive their authority from the sovereign states in which they are located.

The Metropolitan Police Department is controlled by Mayor Muriel Bowser of the District of Columbia, a Democrat, who appoints its police chief. That chief is Pamela Smith. The M.P.D. functions as other municipal police departments do, although it also regularly supports the federal government. The feds make payments to the city reimbursing it for such services. But local officials complain that the funds are insufficient, and not paid on time.

Trump has claimed to have taken control of the M.P.D., the first time a president has done this. His order invokes a provision of the Home Rule Act that allows the president to “determine that special conditions of an emergency nature exist which require the use of the Metropolitan Police force for federal purposes.” The law says the president may then direct the mayor to provide those services, although he must immediately notify Congress of why. He hasn’t done that. And Congress must enact a resolution to extend any emergency for longer than 30 days. They haven’t done that. And the thirty day deadline is approaching.

Six states, in response to requests from the Trump administration for assistance with law enforcement in the capital have, sent soldiers to Washington:

• West Virginia: 300-400 troops
• Mississippi: 200 troops
• Tennessee: 160 troops
• Louisiana: 135 troops
• South Carolina: 200 troops
• Ohio: 150 troops

Each of those states is led by a Republican governor. There does not appear to be any legal justification for their military invasion of the District, which has a Democratic mayor.

Mayor Bowser and the D.C. attorney general, Brian Schwalb, an elected Democrat, filed a lawsuit asking a federal court to halt the “brazen usurpation” of the city’s police. Judge Ana Reyes of the Federal District Court in Washington held an emergency hearing during which she instructed the city and the federal government to work out an agreement recognizing Ms. Smith as the police chief.

This uneasy truce has left the federal agents mostly marching around and detaining immigrants. They are also picking up trash. They did charge one man, reportedly a federal employee, with a felony for allegedly throwing a sandwich at one of them. A grand jury, made up of District residents, refused to indict him. At least among the good citizens of the federal city, good sense prevails.

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