National Guard troops operating in Washington, D.C. will be armed as of Sunday night, a defense official confirmed to FWRD AXIS News.
The weapons will include M-17 pistols or M-4 rifles, according to the official.
The troops are authorized to use their weapons for self-protection and only a small number of troops will carry M4 rifles.
The National Guard was deployed in D.C. as part of President Donald Trump’s effort to control crime in the area, despite crime reports trending down.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the 2,000 National Guard troops in DC to begin carrying weapons, a significant shift for the Guardsman, who were unarmed as they worked to support local law enforcement by assisting with community safety patrols, and traffic control points.
A White House official confirmed to FWRD AXIS News on Sunday the National Guard will not be making any arrests and will continue to assist local law enforcement.
Earlier this month, Trump announced he had deployed hundreds of National Guard troops to the nation’s capital, vowing to evict homeless people off the city streets and jail criminals. However, violent crime has dropped roughly 27% year-over-year, according to D.C. police data.
Democrats have slammed the move, accusing Trump of trying to exert his presidential authority. Some Democrats have gone as far as to label Trump a dictator for his actions.
A U.S. Official confirmed to FWRD AXIS News on Sunday that plans are being made for National Guard forces in Chicago.
“We won’t speculate on further operations. The Department is a planning organization and is continuously working with other agency partners on plans to protect federal assets and personnel,” a defense official said.
Speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said Trump has no reason to send troops to Chicago.
“There’s no basis, no authority for Donald Trump to potentially try to drop federal troops into the city of Chicago,” he said.
Also on Sunday, Trump threatened to send the military into Baltimore to “quickly clean up” crime.
“If Wes Moore needs help, like Gavin Newscum did in L.A., I will send in the ‘troops,’ which is being done in nearby DC, and quickly clean up the Crime,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
Moore responded in a statement, saying that Trump “would rather attack his country’s largest cities from behind a desk than walk the streets with the people he represents.”
“The President should join us in Baltimore because the blissful ignorance, tropes, and the 1980s scare tactics benefit no one,” Moore added. “We need leaders who are there helping the people who are actually on the ground doing the work.”
Trump’s deployment of the National Guard to major cities like D.C. is very uncommon. The National Guard is normally used to respond to situations like natural disasters and civil unrest.
