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Trump Targets Memphis in Nationwide Crime Crackdown, Citing ‘Success’ in D.C.

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President Donald Trump announced that Memphis will be the next city targeted in his nationwide crime crackdown, following what he described as “tremendous success” in reducing violent crime in Washington, D.C.

In an appearance on Fox & Friends Friday morning, Trump stated, “I’ll be the first to say it right now, again, we’re going to Memphis.”

“Memphis is deeply troubled. The mayor is happy. He’s a Democrat. And the governor of Tennessee, the governor is happy. We’re gonna fix that just like we did Washington.”

Although Trump has not outlined the specifics of the plan, his comments suggest federal intervention similar to the actions taken in D.C., where a mix of federal law enforcement and National Guard troops were deployed last month. While violent crime has reportedly dropped, the move drew criticism for harming tourism and straining local businesses.

According to MSNBC, violence in D.C. has been falling since 2023. Homicides fell 32% in 2024 and 12% in 2025. Carjackings dropped 37% in 2025 despite Trump’s claims that they “tripled.” In January 2025, the DOJ reported that violent crime for 2024 in D.C.  is down 35% from 2023, making it the lowest it has been in over 30 years.

Trump claimed both Memphis Mayor Paul Young and Tennessee Governor Bill Lee support the federal push, though neither has publicly confirmed that.

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Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) praised the announcement in a statement.

“Today, President Trump answered my call to do whatever it takes to Make Memphis Safe Again, and I applaud his decision to send the National Guard to Memphis following his tremendous success in reducing violent crime in Washington, D.C.”

Memphis, a heavily Democratic city in a Republican-led state, has recently seen a spike in violent crime. According to FBI data analyzed by CNN, the city had the highest violent crime rate in the nation among urban areas with populations over 250,000 in the last year.

The political makeup may facilitate coordination between local and state officials, unlike cities such as Chicago, where Trump previously threatened to send troops despite resistance from local leaders. In that case, no military deployment materialized, though the Department of Homeland Security did launch an immigration-focused crackdown.

Trump credited Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena for the Memphis decision. According to Trump, Vena urged him to target not just Memphis, but also Chicago and St. Louis, citing public safety concerns during a meeting about Vena’s proposed acquisition of Norfolk Southern.

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“He said, ‘Sir, please don’t lose Chicago. We are about to lose Chicago. It’s a great city. You can save Chicago.’”

Vena, who left the FedEx board in 2023, has not publicly confirmed the conversation. Trump did not comment on whether he supports the merger deal Vena is pursuing, which has sparked concerns among some rail customers over service and cost impacts.

Trump has repeatedly pointed to Washington, D.C., as a blueprint for federal intervention. Last month, the federal government took temporary control of the city’s police department and deployed additional agents. While the National Guard is expected to remain, Trump’s emergency order to federalize the police expired earlier this week.

Critics argue that much of the focus in D.C. has been on undocumented immigrants and the clearing of homeless encampments, a point local officials have pushed back on. Reports also suggest the crackdown has led to a downturn in tourism and restaurant traffic.

Still, Trump teased earlier in the week that another city would be next:

“We’ll be announcing another city that we’re going to very shortly — we’re working it out. The governor of a certain state would love us to be there, and the mayor of a certain city in that same state would love us to be there. We’ll announce it probably tomorrow, and it’s going to be something where we’ll do like we did here.”

white house

Trump Declares ‘Liberation Day’ in D.C., Announces Federal Takeover of Metropolitan Police

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President Donald Trump on Monday unveiled an aggressive law-and-order plan aimed at what he called “out-of-control” crime in the nation’s capital, declaring a public safety emergency and placing the Washington police department under federal control.

Speaking at a news conference flanked by Attorney General Pam Bondi, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro, FBI Director Kash Patel, and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Trump said the measures would “rescue our nation’s capital from crime, bloodshed, bedlam, and squalor and worse.”

“This is Liberation Day in D.C. We’re going to take our capital back,” Trump said.

Under the plan, Bondi will assume command of the Metropolitan Police Department, while DEA Administrator Terry Cole will serve as interim federal commissioner. The president also ordered the deployment of the National Guard, as well as a sweeping presence from multiple federal agencies. Bondi vowed swift results.

“Let me be crystal clear. Crime in D.C. is ending and ending today. We are going to use every power we have to fight criminals here.”

The federal operation will involve officers from the Park Police, U.S. Marshals Service, Capitol Police, Homeland Security Investigations, ATF, and several other law enforcement agencies. Officials say the initiative will last seven days, with a focus on tourist corridors and high-crime areas.

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Trump also announced plans to dismantle homeless encampments across city parks, underpasses, and other public spaces. “Our capital city has been overtaken by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals, roving mobs of wild youth, drugged out maniacs and homeless people,” Trump said.

“We’re going to be removing homeless encampments from all over our parks, our beautiful, beautiful parks, which now a lot of people can’t walk on. They’ve been very, very dirty, very — got a lot of problems. But we’ve already started that. We’re moving the encampments away, trying to take care of people. Some of those people, we don’t know how they even got there. And some of those people are from different countries, different parts of the world. Nobody knows who they are. They have no idea.”

In recent days, Trump had previewed his intentions on his social media platform, posting photos of encampments and writing, “The Homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY. We will give you places to stay, but FAR from the Capital. The Criminals, you don’t have to move out. We’re going to put you in jail where you belong.”

While Trump characterized D.C. as “one of the most dangerous cities anywhere in the world,” city statistics tell a different story. Preliminary year-to-date numbers from the Metropolitan Police Department show overall crime down 7% from last year, including a 26% drop in violent crime and a 5% decline in property crime.

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D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, speaking on MSNBC a day before the announcement, said the city has “driven violent crime down to a 30-year low.”

“It is true that we had a terrible spike in crime in 2023, but this is not 2023; this is 2025, and we’ve done that by working with the community, working with the police, working with our prosecutors, and, in fact, working with the federal government.”

Trump dismissed those assertions, saying Bowser “has been given many chances” but failed to deliver results. “The city only gets dirtier and less attractive. The American public is not going to put up with it any longer.”

The president’s latest action follows months of rhetoric about a possible federal intervention in D.C., as well as a March executive order to “Make the District of Columbia Safe and Beautiful.” Last week, Trump threatened to deploy the National Guard after a former federal employee, Edward Coristine, was assaulted while trying to stop a carjacking.

Administration officials have described the operation as a “whole-of-government approach” to public safety. They say all federal officers participating will be in marked units and highly visible to the public.

Trump framed the effort as both a crackdown on crime and a restoration of the capital’s image. “Something’s out of control,” he said. “But we’re going to put it in control very quickly, like we did on the southern border.”

capitol

RFK Stadium Bill Passed By Senate Committee To Return Control To Washington D.C.

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The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee passed legislation that would give Washington D.C. control over the land that was the former site of the RFK Stadium, taking the District of Columbia one step closer to having the Washington Commanders return to the capital of the US. 

The legislation passed by a 17-2 vote this past Tuesday, and now it will move to a floor vote in the Senate. 

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“Let’s go Commanders,” Joe Manchin, committee chairman, stated once the roll call vote ended.

The bill is officially titled the “D.C. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act.” The overall purpose of this bill is to transfer control of the federal land the stadium is located on from Congress to the local government of the District of Columbia. 

Some of the purposes behind this transfer of land control include commercial and residential development, like a new professional football stadium.

“Today’s result is an exciting and significant step forward for the city of Washington D.C. as it looks to gain long-term control of the RFK site,” a Commanders spokesperson said in a statement. 

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“The Commanders have been fortunate to have three incredible jurisdictions as we search for a new home and stadium. The vote today brings us one step closer towards continuing conversations with D.C., along with Maryland and Virginia, as a potential future home for our franchise.”

Senator Steve Daines previously halted the legislation from moving forward to a full committee vote due to the organization no longer using the logo that was associated with its former nickname. 

The bill initially passed the House of Representatives back in February and was introduced in July 2023. It was one of 74 bills that was on the committee’s schedule this week. 

The Commanders played at RFK Stadium from 1961 until 1996 when the team moved to its current stadium in Landover, Maryland. 

Josh Harris, the owner who purchased the team last year, has been campaigning for the franchise to return to D.C.’s city limits. USA Today reported that Mayor Muriel Bowser has lobbied Congress to give D.C. the control over the land in order to redevelop the stadium and attract the Commanders back; the team is currently being pursued by Maryland and Virginia as well.

Washington DC

Planet World: Washington D.C.’s New Language Museum Opening In May

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“Planet World” is a new museum opening in downtown Washington D.C. next year. Ann Friedman, the founder and primary investor in the museum, describes it as an “interactive museum that will bring language to life,” according to the Washington Post. The museum is set to make its debut on May 31st at its downtown location that is currently known as the historic Franklin School. It will include 10 immersive galleries that will allow visitors to learn about the world’s many diverse cultures and languages in engaging and entertaining ways. 

“Our country was founded on the written word, the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights. After you’ve visited all those word-engraved historic sites, you might like to visit a museum that shows you the broader context, not just the power of words, but the beauty and fun, too. A strong democracy needs a literate population. We know readers are active in their communities. They vote. So we need to find additional ways to engage people with words, with reading, with books. Museums can try anything; they’re not hemmed in by time or curriculum requirements. So, if joke-telling or speechmaking or rapping is the key to hooking someone on reading, they can give that a try,” Friedman told The Post. 

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The Post also reported that one of the museum’s galleries will include a twelve foot tall “high-wattage globe” where visitors will be able to select various locations from anywhere in the world and learn about the languages of those places, as well as words and phrases that are specific to that one culture. Other exhibits include a room filled with hundreds of speakers that are hooked up to play parts of famous poems and speeches that made major political/cultural impacts around the world. A quiet room explicitly offering audio of poems in all languages, with translations projected onto the walls is another exhibit being advertised, as well as many other interactive spaces that will give guests the opportunity to solve challenging word puzzles, paint word art, as well as a space where visitors will be able to attempt to deliver famous speeches in a variety of languages (The Post). One of Friedmans past careers was a first grade teacher, so she ensured that the museum had plenty of space for learning; Planet World will also include an auditorium and multiple classrooms. Admission will be completely free. 

Friedman is the daughter of late shopping mall entrepreneur billionaire Matthew Bucksaum, which is how the massive project is getting done in the first place. According to The Post, Friendman will be using her own money to completely restore the Franklin School and convert it into the Planet World Museum. The Franklin school is a National Historic landmark that originally opened in 1869 as one of downtown D.C.’s districts first public schools. The entire renovation will cost $25 million when all is said and done. 

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“I’m happy this building is going to live again. It’s going to attract people, whether they are interested in words and language or not, because they haven’t been able to get inside for a decade. People are going to have so much fun and be amazed by the technology and the ways we have been able to bring language to life,” said Friedman.

In the past, Friedman worked on nonprofit charity boards, including the renown National Symphony Orchestra, but noted that she didn’t have any museum experience, until now. Friedman wanted to be as hands on with this project as possible, after all she is paying for it, so back in 2013 she began attending multiple museum conferences, and met with leaders of different institutions that were popular in America. Through this she was able to network among D.C.’s vast community of experts on world history, language, and the inner workings of running a museum, and create a stellar board for Planet World. The Planet World Museum Board includes investment bankers, lawyers, educators of all levels, writers, and museum professionals, some of which have experience working at the Smithsonian, (The Post). 

The goal was to bring all of these individuals together and create a space that they all felt passionately about. This project was meant to be more than just work, and instead is about creation and education. Planet World will be opening May 31st in downtown D.C.