President Donald Trump has announced plans to move homeless people “far” from Washington, D.C., escalating tensions with the city’s local government and fueling debate over his federal control ambitions.
Speaking on his Truth Social platform Sunday, Trump vowed to make the U.S. capital “safer and more beautiful than it ever was before,” saying the homeless must “move out, IMMEDIATELY” and promising alternative accommodations located “FAR from the Capital.” He added that criminals would be swiftly imprisoned and that the plan would be executed “very fast.”
The Republican billionaire has scheduled a Monday press conference to unveil his proposals, amid ongoing friction over Washington’s governance. Under current law, the District of Columbia operates with a locally elected mayor and council, but Congress retains oversight. Trump has long expressed frustration with this arrangement, threatening to federalize the city and place it under direct White House authority.
His latest remarks follow earlier threats to deploy the National Guard to Washington as part of a crackdown on what he falsely claims is rising crime. Official statistics show a different reality: violent crime in the capital fell by 26 percent in the first half of 2025 compared to the same period last year. In fact, 2024 saw Washington’s lowest crime rates in three decades, according to Justice Department figures compiled before Trump took office.
“We are not experiencing a crime spike,” Mayor Muriel Bowser said Sunday on MSNBC. While avoiding direct criticism of Trump, the Democratic leader called comparisons to war-torn countries “hyperbolic and false.”
Washington ranks 15th among major U.S. cities for its homeless population, according to 2024 government data. While thousands sleep in shelters or on the streets each night, numbers have declined since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Trump’s threat to send in the National Guard comes just weeks after he deployed California’s military reserve force to Los Angeles to suppress protests over immigration raids moves opposed by local leaders and law enforcement.
The president has repeatedly floated using military force in cities, particularly those run by Democrats and resistant to his nationalist agenda. Monday’s announcement is expected to detail whether his Washington plan will be voluntary relocation or enforced removal and how far “far” will be.
