President Trump said on Monday that he would take control of the Washington, D.C., police department and send hundreds of National Guard troops to the city.
Devlin Barrett, who covers the F.B.I. for The New York Times, explains why the president says this is necessary and how it fits into his broader strategy for dealing with cities run by Democrats.
Jan 25
The Sunday Daily: We Underestimated the Neanderthal
Pop culture has not been kind to the Neanderthal. In books, movies and even TV commercials, the species is portrayed as rough and mindless, a brutish type that was rightly supplanted by our Homo sapiens ancestors.But even 40,000 years after the last Neanderthals walked the earth, ... Show More
32m 1s
Sep 2025
Trump Says D.C. Is Now ‘Crime Free.’ What’s The Reality?
After nearly a month of federal law enforcement and military personnel patrolling the streets of Washington, D.C., President Trump says the District is a “crime-free zone.” We discuss what’s really going on in the city, as well as the pressures on the majority Democratic city’s D ... Show More
20m 43s
Aug 2025
Sources & Methods: Trump's DC takeover, Ukraine, fired spy chief
Today, we're excited to share an episode from NPR's newest podcast, Sources & Methods. Each Thursday, host Mary Louise Kelly breaks down the week's biggest national security news with NPR's team of reporters covering the military, State Department, and spy agencies. NPR correspon ... Show More
33m 18s
Sep 2025
Trump's "tough on crime" spree
President Donald Trump thinks he solved crime in the nation's capital. Let’s take a look at the data (which he says is dubious). This episode was produced by Peter Balonon-Rosen, edited by Amina Al-Sadi, fact-checked by Laura Bullard, engineered by Andrea Kristinsdottir, and host ... Show More
25m 48s
Oct 7
Trump's War on Blue America
<p>Donald Trump orders National Guard troops to Chicago and Portland, making good on his promise to generals to use American cities as "training grounds." Jon, Tommy, and Lovett discuss the court order—issued by a Trump-appointed judge—that blocked the deployment in Portland, the ... Show More
1h 26m