WASHINGTON (7News) — Attorneys for the Trump administration and the D.C. Attorney General’s Office argued in a U.S. District Court on Friday whether National Guard troops should be in DC or not.
The arguments, held on Friday before Judge Jia Cobb, are a part of a lawsuit D.C.’s Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed in September against the Trump administration in an attempt to remove military troops from DC streets. President Trump, starting in August, has deployed some 2500 troops from several states to lower what Trump called out-of-control crime in the Nation’s Capital.
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D.C. argued in court that this troop deployment is akin to an illegal invasion. The administration countered by insisting that Trump has broad discretion in such matters.
The District also argued, among other things, that it’s unlawful for military troops to oversee local law enforcement duties. The administration insists National Guard troops are not policing but instead working in a supportive capacity, despite the fact that they’ve been deputized.
D.C.’s Attorney General’s Office filed a temporary injunction in this case after hearing that troops may stay in the city into next summer as part of the country’s 250th anniversary celebrations. Officially, troop deployment orders are set to expire at the end of November 2025.
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Judge Cobb, after hearing hours of arguments, has taken this case under advisement.