South Carolina has doubled down and sent additional National Guard troops to Washington, D.C. as part of a second wave of federal deployment. We urge South Carolinians to ask what this effort is really accomplishing and at what cost.
Deploying the National Guard may play well in headlines, but it doesn’t build safer neighborhoods.
In Washington, D.C., we’ve lived through the first phase of this federal surge. What we saw was a dramatic spike in low-level arrests and swarms of federal agents in public spaces, all under the banner of a so-called “crime emergency.”
What followed was increased burdens on young people, overwhelmed courts, the cancellation of vital community activities and, most troubling of all, polling that showed the majority of residents felt less safe than before.
Deploying the military is not a sustainable strategy for public safety.
The presence of a badge or a uniform alone doesn’t guarantee justice, and we can use federal tax dollars more effectively.
When Congress slashes funding for violence interruption, youth programs, housing, and mental health services and then turns around and floods the streets with militarized agents, they’re not offering a solution.
They’re creating a short-term spectacle that ignores long-term needs.
This year, major cities across the country saw encouraging reductions in violent crime. That happened because of years of investment in prevention, community-based support, and early intervention strategies.
In Washington, we’ve seen the evidence: hospital-based violence intervention programs, youth engagement, behavioral health resources, and mentorship initiatives work. They create real, measurable safety by keeping people connected and supported.
We are not naïve. We know public safety is a serious concern for many communities, including in South Carolina.
But sustainable safety cannot be imposed from the outside in. It must be built from the ground up in close partnership with residents, local officials, and community organizations who understand what’s happening on the ground.
That’s why it’s so alarming to see this deployment move forward with no local consultation and no clear strategy.
Policymakers should stop ignoring the data and start funding what works.
Militarized “solutions” may be good for soundbites, but they do nothing to address the root causes of violence.
Our community deserves more than posturing.
Washington residents deserve the right to govern ourselves, including determining how best to achieve long-term safety. Washington’s voters overwhelmingly support public safety solutions built on trust and meaningful investment.
Sending more National Guard to Washington might make headlines, but it won’t make us safer.
Vanessa Batters-Thompson is the executive director of DC Appleseed Center for Law & Justice, a nonprofit advocacy organization in the District of Columbia. She brings more than 20 years of experience in litigation, policy, and public interest advocacy. Before joining DC Appleseed, Vanessa held leadership roles at the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center, Bread for the City, and George Washington University Law School. She holds a law degree from GW Law and a bachelor's degree from American University. She lives in Washington, D.C. with her family and enjoys camping, reading, and growing flowers.
More photos of what they're doing are at the end of this article here.
Federal appeals judges allow Trump’s National Guard deployment to DC, for now
300 SC troops are in Washington for a 90-day deployment that began earlier this month
BY: ASHLEY MURRAY - DECEMBER 17, 2025 5:27 PM
WASHINGTON — A U.S. appeals court ruled Wednesday that National Guard troops can remain in the District of Columbia while the judges take up the case that began when the district sued the Trump administration for deploying roughly 2,000 troops to the nation’s capital.
Pointing to the district’s special status as a federal territory, a three-judge panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia found President Donald Trump would likely succeed in his administration’s argument to keep federalized National Guard troops in Washington, D.C.
Wednesday’s ruling means the guard troops from the District of Columbia and nine states will continue patrolling Washington, D.C., through February, unless the appeals judges find a lower court order against the mobilization to be correct.
Guard members have been deployed to the district from South Carolina, West Virginia, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Ohio, Georgia, Alabama, and South Dakota.
Judge Patricia Millett, appointed by former President Barack Obama, wrote the decision, in which Judges Gregory Katsas and Neomi Rao, both appointed during Trump’s first term, concurred.
“Because the District of Columbia is a federal district created by Congress, rather than a constitutionally sovereign entity like the fifty States, the Defendants appear on this early record likely to prevail on the merits of their argument that the President possesses a unique power within the District — the seat of the federal government — to mobilize the Guard,” Millet wrote.
Trump mobilized the District of Columbia National Guard and several state guards to the capital under Title 32 status, meaning their members can assist local law enforcement.
District court order
Judge Jia Cobb, for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, found the administration’s deployment of more than 2,000 guard troops in the city illegal but stayed her Nov. 20 decision until Dec. 11 to give the administration time to appeal and remove the guard members from the district’s streets.
The Trump administration asked the federal appeals court to grant an emergency stay by Dec. 4, which the judges did.
U.S. senators who oversee armed services policy heard testimony from high-level Department of Defense officials on Dec. 11 regarding the Trump administration’s National Guard deployments to five U.S. cities, including Washington, D.C.
Guard member shooting
Wednesday’s decision comes three weeks after two West Virginia National Guard members were shot on Nov. 26 just blocks from the White House. U.S. Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died from her injuries the following day, Thanksgiving. U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, underwent surgery for critical injuries and remains hospitalized.
Prosecutors charged the suspected shooter, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national who was living in Washington state, with first-degree murder, among other charges.
On the day of the shooting, the Trump administration filed an emergency motion to stay Cobb’s order that found Trump’s guard deployment to the district was illegal.
Trump initially mobilized 800 National Guard troops to the nation’s capital in August after declaring a “crime emergency.”
Ashley Murray covers the nation’s capital as a senior reporter for States Newsroom. Her coverage areas include domestic policy and appropriations.
SC Daily Gazette is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
