'A federal funeral': Officials warn 'no one knows who’s in charge' as Trump sows chaos and confusion

12 August

Motorcycle police in Washington, D.C. on October 2, 2021 (Bob Korn/Shutterstock.com)

When President Donald Trump discussed his plans to federalize law enforcement in Washington, D.C. during a White House press conference on Monday, August 11, he claimed that the move was necessary because violent crime was out of control in city. But MSNBC's Chris Jansing was quick to fact-check the president, pointing out that crime, in fact, is down in the U.S. capitol.

Jansing isn't the only one fact-checking Trump's claims.

In an article published by NBC News, reporters Rich Schapiro, Ryan J. Reilly and Michael Kosnar stress that Trump's move comes at a time when Washington, D.C. is much safer than it was in the past. Moreover, they report, Trump is causing chaos and confusion among D.C. police.

"In early January," the journalists explain, "federal prosecutors in Washington released a press bulletin with the subject line: 'Violent crime in D.C. hits 30-year low.' And since then, it has plummeted 26 percent, according to the Metropolitan Police Department. Yet Trump, on Monday, portrayed D.C. as a crime-infested hellscape and said Attorney General Pam Bondi would 'take command of the Metropolitan Police Department as of this moment.'"

Some law enforcement experts interviewed by NBC News art critical of Trump's move.

Former Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo told NBC News, "Not only is it unprecedented, it's unwarranted. There's no reason for it other than the political optics sought by the (Trump) Administration to pretend that crime is out of control and they are the saviors."

Law enforcement experts also said that Trump is creating chaos in the U.S. capitol.

A federal official, interviewed on condition of anonymity, told NBC News, "No one knows who is in charge or what they're supposed to do."

Schapiro, Reilly and Kosnar report, "As many as 120 FBI agents, mostly from the FBI Washington Field Office, worked shifts with the Metropolitan Police Department this weekend, the official said. But agents were confused about their exact role on the streets and who they reported to at any given time…. Unmarked federal law enforcement vehicles are trailing patrol cars in Washington to provide support if needed, another federal official said."

The NBC News reporters add, "Some agents dismissed such efforts a waste of resources, with one jokingly calling the processions 'a federal funeral.'"

Read the full NBC News article at this link.

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