Since August 12th, nearly 2,000 National Guard troops have descended on Washington DC to address what Trump has described as an “epidemic of crime in our Nation’s capital.” The previous day he declared a crime emergency, taking federal control of the DC police. Trump and his supporters have painted a dystopian picture of the capital, overrun by violent gangs and homelessness. Stephen Miller, White House Chief of Staff, even said that Washington DC is more violent than Baghdad.
This comes just two months after Trump federalized the California National Guard to put down protests in Los Angeles. Reports also show the Pentagon has been planning to deploy troops to Chicago, and Trump has threatened to mobilize the Guard to other Democratic-run cities including New York, San Francisco, Baltimore, and Oakland.
These actions are not about controlling crime—they are a blatant power grab and do nothing to actually solve the social and economic crises that lead to crime. By flexing his control over the military and law enforcement, Trump is testing the limits of his power and further normalizing his authoritarianism, and without mass pushback he will only grow bolder. We cannot wait for the Democrats or the courts to fight for us. Working people have the power to stop these attacks and prevent further escalation.
Trump Is A Symptom, Capitalism Is The Disease
While Trump’s actions are extreme, they are rooted in a capitalist system that breeds inequality, racism, xenophobia, and violence. Working people across the country are facing a cost-of-living crisis, underfunded public education, a lack of affordable housing, and cuts to social services. In 2024, the richest 20% of households in Washington DC had more income than the bottom 80% combined. Capitalism’s relentless pursuit of profit at any cost drives tens of millions of people in the US into poverty, while the ultra-wealthy rake in record profits and their political representatives maintain the system.
While Trump is spearheading the militarization of our streets, the Democrats have done more than enough to help lay the groundwork for the crises he’s using to justify his invasion. Both political parties seek to criminalize homelessness and poverty, targeting young Black people and immigrants and exacerbating the existing crisis. Even before the National Guard occupation, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser oversaw the clearing out of dozens of homeless camps and fought to repeal the law that restricted city agencies from cooperating with ICE. Trump’s actions have expanded this with over 1,000 arrests since August 11, roughly a third of which are immigration-related.
Yet the real solutions to crime and homelessness lie in providing high-quality, affordable housing, free healthcare, and robust social services—not in deploying troops or more police. Studies show correlations between increased police funding, police-related killings of Black people, and higher levels of suicide in the Black communities. It’s clear that Trump’s militarized occupation of DC will only deepen the crises which working people already face.
What’s Really Going On Here?
Trump is a symptom of a system in decay which has no solutions for the myriad problems facing millions. At the same time, capitalism has entered an era of rising global tension as imperialist powers vie for control and influence. This overall drive toward militarization and nationalism requires getting working people in line and preparing our society for war. Facing these realities and standing on such a shaky foundation, Trump is doubling down on tactics the ruling class has always used: state-sponsored oppression and divide-and-rule.
Violent crime has been going down in major cities across the US, but by preying on people’s fears, Trump can justify authoritarian actions and assert control. Taking aim at Democrat-run cities with high Black populations stokes racism to embolden his base and further polarize society. This is also an extension of his ongoing assault on immigrants, as he tries to make good on his campaign promise of mass deportations and improve his approval ratings. Deploying armed troops also aims to deter any potential resistance to the administration’s overreaches, continuing Trump’s repression of protesters.
Unsurprisingly, the Democrats are making this easy for him. On August 27, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser said that the surge of federal law enforcement has been effective in lowering crime. Before that, she repeatedly used the occupation as proof that the city needs to hire 500 more officers. Meanwhile, DC schools remain underfunded, and homelessness affects around 5,000 people every night. Black working people are being forced out of the city from gentrification caused by rich developers, along with ever-rising prices and stagnant wages.
Enough is Enough—We Need a Mass Movement
It’s clear we can’t rely on the Democrats to fight for us. Even when they try to posture against Trump, they rely on futile strategies through the courts that Trump openly defies. Gavin Newsom, governor of California, filed a lawsuit against Trump’s use of the National Guard in LA on June 9th. Almost three months later, we are still waiting on a ruling. This drawn-out legalistic approach means nothing when the White House ignores court orders, and faces no real resistance.
The Democrats know they have no solid ground to mount a meaningful challenge, as they themselves are also guilty of abuses of power. In 2020, Newsom, along with other Democratic governors, deployed National Guard troops to quell protests during the George Floyd uprising. Since then, Democrats have been at the forefront of increasing police budgets and returning to stop-and-frisk policies in cities like New York and Philadelphia.
Working people can’t stand for Trump’s attacks, and we can’t afford to return to the status quo. The biggest danger we face is Trump growing increasingly bold in the absence of any real fightback. We urgently need to organize a mass movement of workers and youth, independent of the two corporate parties, to stop Trump’s escalations. We’ve caught glimpses of this, like in 2020, when millions of working-class people, especially Black youth, rose up against police violence and systemic racism.
But to solve those crises, the protests needed to escalate towards shutting down the capitalist system—a lesson we need to bring into the struggle today. Trump’s power grab can fuel mass mobilizations like the No Kings rallies during the National Guard invasion of LA. But we need the labor movement to take up the fight against Trump and escalate actions from street protests to strike action, alongside militant actions like walkouts and sit-ins.
These actions point to where our power comes from: shutting down their profits. Ultimately, we need to take aim at the entire capitalist system that breeds strongman leaders like Trump. To really put a halt to Trump’s authoritarian power grab, we need to demand real solutions to capitalist crises and build a movement to fight for them.
Socialist Alternative Says:
- National Guard out of our cities – Coordinate and escalate the struggle nationally to stop the occupation. Mobilize the labor movement and unions to shut down business as usual.
- Dramatically slash police and military budgets – Demilitarize law enforcement and address the root causes of crime and poverty. Tax the rich to fund public services like schools, housing, and healthcare.
- No trust in the democrats and courts – We need a new party that will take on the right wing and be accountable to working people, not billionaires.
- The whole system is guilty – We need a system that provides affordable housing, free healthcare, and quality public education instead of criminalizing poverty: a socialist society!