US National Guard members deployed to Washington, DC, started carrying their sidearms on Sunday, a spokesperson for the Joint Task Force carrying out the mission told CNN.
This follows a directive by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth last week that authorized members of the National Guard, who were deployed as part of President Donald Trump’s anti-crime agenda in the nation’s capital, to begin carrying weapons.
The directive marked a notable shift in guidance from the Pentagon, which had previously indicated that National Guard members could be armed if the circumstances warranted.
A CNN reporter witnessed two guard members carrying long guns Sunday evening in The Wharf, a popular waterfront neighborhood.
For weeks, Trump has ramped up efforts to crack down on crime in Washington, DC, which has also included a federal takeover of the city’s police department and increased federal law enforcement presence. The president has repeatedly complained about rising crime in DC, but overall crime numbers are lower this year than in 2024.
To assist the DC National Guard, more than 1,900 troops from the National Guards in West Virginia, South Carolina, Mississippi, Ohio, Louisiana and Tennessee were called upon. Troops from the GOP-led states began arriving in the nation’s capital last week.
In the week beginning August 12, the first full day the Trump administration had control of the Metropolitan Police Department, the city saw a moderate drop in reported crime — and a far larger surge in arrests of immigrants, a CNN analysis of government data found.
CNN’s Jennifer Hansler contributed to this report.
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