WASHINGTON – Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth authorized the National Guard to expand its presence in the nation's capital with military tactical vehicles and patrol boats, according to a department official.
In a memo dated Oct. 29, Hegseth authorized the National Guard to use military tactical vehicles, patrol boats, up to 60 marked police cars, and up to 20 light towers and generators while deployed in the Washington area.
The expanded National Guard presence follows President Donald Trump's initial deployment of troops to Washington, DC, in August 2025 as part of his "Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful" mission.
The White House referred to the Pentagon in response to a request for comment. The Oct. 29 memo was first reported by Politico.
Trump justified
the deployment by claiming that there was a "crime emergency" in the city. Humvees and armed troops suddenly became a regular presence at landmarks around the nation’s capital.
The decision to double down on the National Guard's deployment and authorize maritime boat patrols in the rivers surrounding Washington, DC, suggests a focus on targeting suspected drug traffickers. Troops are allowed to support law enforcement officials, but they do not have the power to make arrests.
For the past years, the troops have largely been used to patrol Washington’s metro, pick up trash and occasionally break up fights. Members of the District of Columbia National Guard, as part of an initiative called "Task Force Beautification," have collected 1,099 bags of trash and spread 1,045 cubic yards of mulch as of Sept. 29, according to a recent news release.
The presence of the troops in the nation’s capital has come under scrutiny from some lawmakers, who argue that it is expensive and unnecessary.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, revealed in August that the National Guard’s deployment in Washington, DC, through the rest of Trump’s term in office will cost taxpayers $1.4 billion, according to an estimate from the Pentagon.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: National Guard to expand DC patrols with military vehicles, boats
