President Trump, after asserting that his administration “should take over” Washington, D.C., offered a more measured plan Thursday, signing an executive order that creates a task force on crime prevention and immigration enforcement in the capital and initiates a plan to clean up public lands. Trump established the “D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force,” chaired by presidential advisers and including representatives from nine federal agencies. The task force does not include Mayor Muriel Bowser or other local officials. “My administration shall work closely with local officials to share information, develop joint priorities and maximize resources to make the District of Columbia safe,” the order states. Trump has derided the city as unsafe, dysfunctional and graffiti-ridden, the Washington Post reports.
The order mentions specific policy changes in D.C., including keeping "dangerous criminals off the streets by strengthening pre-trial detention policies," Axios reports. Also, expediting concealed carry licenses for "law-abiding citizens." Currently, individuals with a licensed firearm must complete hours of safety and range training and pass a background check. Early drafts of the order included more forceful crackdowns on crime and homelessness that would have flirted with infringing on the District’s autonomy, The Washington Post has reported. Bowser has consistently done what the president has wanted: bulldozing an area known as Black Lives Matter Plaza and cleaning homeless encampments.. “The administration has been happy to see the commitments from the mayor in improving the city,” said a White House official. “But the president felt like executive action on the issue was warranted, so he went ahead and did it.”
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