The Department of Justice on Wednesday issued a scathing rebuke of the D.C. City Council after its members wrote to several state governors demanding that they remove their National Guard troops from the nation’s capital.The National Guard has been in the city since August of last year as part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to crack down on crime and illegal immigration there.
In a Wednesday letter, Deputy Attorney General Colin McDonald excoriated the city council for its letter demanding that the National Guard leave.
“Let me be clear, your council has no power to demand that governors remove their brave men and women from serving in uniform in our Nation’s capital,” McDonald bluntly declared.
“Your politically motivated letter is impotent theatrics not with the paper it’s written on, and D.C. is a much safer place no matter what you say,” he wrote. “Regardless, the D.C. Council has no role in managing the brace men and women protecting our Nation’s capital.”
In a separate set of letters to the governors contributing members of their National Guard, he expressed gratitude for their support.
“Washington, D.C. is Safe and Beautiful today because of your leadership and the courage of the men and women of your National Guard,” he said. “They have saved lives and changed the trajectory of the city.”
McDonald wrote to the governors of Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and West Virginia.
