National Guard troops deployed to Washington

The Republican governors of three states are deploying hundreds of National Guard troops to Washington, DC, at the request of the administration of President Donald Trump, who has portrayed the city as awash in crime.

The announcements on Saturday of troops from hundreds of kilometres away in West Virginia, South Carolina and Ohio came a day after DC officials and the Trump administration negotiated a deal to keep Mayor Muriel Bowser's appointed police chief, Pamela Smith, in charge of the police department after DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed a lawsuit to block the federal takeover of the department.

West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey's office said in a statement on Saturday he was deploying 300 to 400 National Guard troops to DC in "a show of commitment to public safety and regional cooperation." The statement said he also was providing equipment and specialised training.

South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster responded to a Pentagon request by announcing late on Saturday that 200 of his state's National Guard troops would be sent.

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said he would send 150 military police members in the coming days, adding none of them were "currently serving as law enforcement officers in the state".

Trump said last week he was deploying hundreds of DC National Guard troops to Washington and temporarily taking over the Democratic-led city's police department to curb what he depicted as a crime and homelessness emergency.

Justice Department data, however, showed violent crime in 2024 hit a 30-year low in Washington, technically a self-governing federal district under the jurisdiction of Congress.

After the announcements, Mayor Bowser posted on X: "American soldiers and airmen policing American citizens on American soil is #UnAmerican".

In June Trump ordered 700 Marines and 4000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles, against the wishes of California's Democratic governor, during protests over mass immigration raids by federal officials.

South Carolina's McMaster said his troops would immediately return to South Carolina if needed to respond to a possible hurricane or other natural disaster.

Hurricane Erin, now northeast of Puerto Rico, has become a catastrophic Category 5 storm that could bring ocean swells to the US East Coast early next week, the US National Hurricane Center on Saturday.

National Guard troops often respond to natural disasters and rarely police US civilians.

A White House official said on Saturday that more National Guard troops would be called in to Washington to "protect federal assets, create a safe environment for law enforcement officials to carry out their duties when required, and provide a visible presence to deter crime".

A US official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said a formal order was expected to go out that would authorise National Guard troops in DC to carry firearms.