The head of the Drug and Enforcement Administration is functionally “in charge” of Washington, DC’s Metropolitan Police Department during the Trump administration’s takeover of law enforcement within the city, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said today.
President Donald Trump tapped Terrance Cole as interim federal commissioner of the DC Metropolitan Police Department.
“Terry Cole, as you heard from this briefing room yesterday, is in charge of the Metropolitan Police Department, and he’s working with the chief to ensure that law enforcement officers are allowed to do their jobs in this city,” Leavitt told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins.
The assertion came after DC leaders signaled they did not expect significant organizational changes at the department because of the federal takeover, while vowing to work with their federal partners and seeking to downplay any controversy.
Earlier today: When asked if she answered to Cole, MPD Police Chief Pamela Smith responded, “I answer to Mayor Muriel Bowser.”
And Bowser said, “Our organizational chart, how we do business, how we fund the police, how we make changes — none of that has changed.”
Leavitt characterized Cole as tasked with working with Smith, adding that both of them would report up to Attorney General Pam Bondi for the duration of the 30-day federal takeover.
She also declined to rule out the possibility of firing DC police officers, while noting that there are no current plans to do so.
“I would imagine it means they have the ability,” Leavitt said of the potential for personnel changes. “As for any changes, I’m not tracking any.”