This was a big move. The previously unarmed National Guard members deployed to Washington D.C. can now carry weapons. As part of the Trump administration plan to crack down on crime in the Nation’s Capital, Hegseth announced that military members patrolling the D.C. will now be allowed to carry their service weapons. BREAKING: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has just authorized 2,000 National Guard troops on the ground in DC to be ARMED Hegseth’s order given to troops instructs them to carry their service weapons on them. Until now, most had been unarmed. pic.twitter.com/kkqXt6Hvcg — Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) August 22, 2025 CNN provided the following details on Hegseth’s latest orders: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered National Guard members patrolling the streets of Washington, DC, to begin carrying their service weapons as they fulfill President Donald Trump’s crime crackdown in the nation’s capital, according to a US defense official. The directive from Hegseth represents a notable shift in guidance from the Pentagon, which had previously indicated that National Guard members could be armed if the circumstances warranted, and suggests hundreds of guard troops deployed in DC will soon be carrying weapons despite serving in a support role. “At the direction of the Secretary of Defense, (Joint Task Force) JTF-DC members supporting the mission to lower the crime rate in our Nation’s capital will soon be on mission with their service-issued weapons, consistent with their mission and training,” the official said. The D.C. National Guard remains committed to safeguarding the District of Columbia and serving those who live, work, and visit the District,” the official added. President Trump recently visited the troops in Washington D.C. who are on patrol. Take a look: President Donald J. Trump thanks the National Guard and law enforcement officers in D.C. “You people are winners, and I just think it’s such an honor to be with you. We’re going to Make Washington, D.C. Great Again… “We’ll always be with you.” pic.twitter.com/dzAR2lpueH — The White House (@WhiteHouse) August 22, 2025 JUST NOW: President Donald J. Trump stops by to thank the men and women of the national guard and law enforcement in D.C. for making the capital great again. pic.twitter.com/BgzxfNfEy6 — The White House (@WhiteHouse) August 21, 2025 Yahoo News reported on President Trump’s recent visit to troops in D.C. making the street safe again. President Donald Trump stood among several hundred law enforcement officers, National Guard troops and federal agents at a U.S. Park Police operations center in one of Washington, D.C.’s most dangerous neighborhoods. As the cameras rolled, he offered a stark message about crime, an issue he’s been hammering for decades, as he thanked them for their efforts. “We’re not playing games,” he said. “We’re going to make it safe. And we’re going to then go on to other places.” The Republican president is proudly promoting the work of roughly 2,000 National Guard troops in the city, loaned by allied governors from at least six Republican-led states. They’re in place to confront what Trump describes as an out-of-control crime wave in the Democratic-run city, though violent crime in Washington, like dozens of cities led by Democrats, has been down significantly since a pandemic high. Trump and his allies are confident that his stunning decision to dispatch troops to a major American city is a big political winner almost certain to remind voters of why they elected him last fall. Democrats say this is a fight they’re eager to have. Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, an Army veteran, cast Trump’s move as a dangerous political stunt designed to distract the American people from his inability to address persistent inflation, rising energy prices and major health insurance cuts, among other major policy challenges. “I’m deeply offended, as someone who’s actually worn the uniform, that he would use the lives of these men and women and the activation of these men and women as political pawns,” Moore told The Associated Press.