Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that 500 more National Guard troops will be deployed to Washington, D.C., after two National Guard members were shot blocks from the White House on Wednesday.
“That’s why President Trump has asked me, and I will ask the secretary of the Army to the National Guard to add 500 additional troops, National Guardsmen, to Washington, D.C.,” Hegseth told reporters on Wednesday during his trip to the Dominican Republic.
“This will only stiffen our resolve to ensure that we make Washington, D.C., safe and beautiful. The drop in crime has been historic. The increase in safety and security has been historic,” the Defense secretary added after his meeting with Dominican officials. “But if criminals want to conduct things like this, violence against America’s best, we will never back down. President Trump will never back down. That’s why the American people elected him.”
The request from Trump comes shortly after two members of the National Guard were “critically wounded” in a shooting on 17th and I Street. The Metropolitan Police Department said the suspect is in custody.
There have been conflicting reports on the condition of the victims, as West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey (R) initially announced that both service members were part of the West Virginia National Guard and had passed away.
Minutes later, Morrisey said his office is “receiving conflicting reports about the condition of our two Guard members and will provide additional updates once we receive more complete information.”
There are around 2,200 National Guard troops, from various states, deployed to the nation’s capital as part of the administration’s effort to crack down on crime in the District.
Last week, a federal judge blocked the deployment of National Guard troops to Washington, D.C. However, U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb, an appointee of former President Biden, put that ruling on hold until Dec. 11. The Trump administration has appealed the ruling.
President Trump condemned the shooting on Wednesday and praised the work of the National Guard in the nation’s capital.
“The animal that shot the two National Guardsmen, with both being critically wounded, and now in two separate hospitals, is also severely wounded, but regardless, will pay a very steep price. God bless our Great National Guard, and all of our Military and Law Enforcement,” Trump said on Truth Social.