Power Grab/Fire anyone who can stop him
The number of Guard troops in Washington, D.C. doubles to more than 5,100, all deputized and armed, at $3 million a day
The “summer surge” doubled a deployment that began in August 2025, and in July 2026 it was ordered extended through Inauguration Day in January 2029.
What happened
The number of National Guard troops in Washington, D.C. doubled in a month to more than 5,100, drawn from nearly two dozen states. The federally announced “summer surge” grew a deployment that began in August 2025, when Trump sent the Guard into the city saying it was overrun by crime.
All of the troops were sworn in as special deputies by the U.S. Marshals Service and carry firearms, according to the Joint Task Force running the deployment. The deputization gives them arrest authority. The Congressional Budget Office put the cost at more than $3 million a day.
In July 2026 the deployment was ordered extended through Inauguration Day, January 20, 2029. Some governors set limits. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz withdrew his state’s troops early, and Kentucky, North Carolina, Michigan, Maryland and Hawaii sent contingents with similar time limits.
Who benefited
The White House has more than 5,000 armed soldiers under federal command in the capital, with police powers, through the end of the term. It also has a template for the other cities it has sent troops to.
Who wanted something
Trump has described Washington as a “crime-ridden hellhole” and treats the deployment as proof the approach works. The Marshals’ deputization is the legal device that gives soldiers arrest powers without invoking the Insurrection Act. Trump sent the Guard in August 2025 saying the city was overrun by crime, and the deployment was never withdrawn.
Who lost out
The District of Columbia, which has no governor to object and no vote in Congress, is patrolled by armed soldiers from other states. Your taxpayer money pays more than $3 million a day. Some Guard members told NPR they did not know why they were there.
Why it matters
Washington now has more than 5,100 armed soldiers, deputized as federal law enforcement and ordered to stay until the day the next president is sworn in. It is the one city where the administration faces no governor to say no.
Sources NPR (via WLRN)NPRNPR