Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday tapped the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) chief to serve as Washington’s “emergency police commissioner,” a move to wrest power from the district’s current police chief amid the Trump administration’s law enforcement takeover.
DEA Administrator Terry Cole will now assume “all of the powers and duties” of D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith, Bondi said in a directive Thursday. The appointment quickly drew backlash from local officials, including D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb, who told Smith in a letter that he believed Cole’s appointment was unlawful.
The attorney general’s directive asserted that Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) leaders had to receive approval from Cole before issuing any directives to its officers.
In his letter to Smith, however, Schwalb argued that the Home Rule Act — the law under which President Trump has temporarily assumed control of the district’s police — did not allow for the federal government to directly alter the chain of command.
“It is my opinion that the Bondi Order is unlawful, and that you are not legally obligated to follow it,” he wrote.
When the White House first announced its federalization of law enforcement in the nation’s capital, Cole was named as the department’s interim federal administrator. A career DEA agent who was stationed in Bogota, Colombia; Kabul, Afghanistan and Mexico City, he was confirmed to his position in the administration in July.
MPD issued a statement following the decision, but did not offer an opinion on Cole’s appointment.
“We understand there may be questions about recent decisions regarding the Metropolitan Police Department,” a department spokesperson told NewsNation, The Hill’s sister network.
“What’s most important for our community to know is that MPD remains committed to delivering high-quality police service and ensuring the safety of everyone in our city,” they added.
Previously, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and Smith said MPD leaders would continue to make decisions. Bowser, who was out of town Thursday, called Trump’s moves “unsettling and unprecedented.”
The president has signaled he plans to request an extension on the 30-day takeover from Congress. He also deployed National Guard soldiers to Washington earlier this week to patrol the streets amid the administration’s efforts to fight crime, which has also sparked pushback and protests.
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