A new resolution introduced in the U.S. House would extend President Donald Trump’s federal takeover of the D.C. police department beyond a current deadline next month, allowing him to continue it for as long as he believes it is necessary.
The measure was recently announced by Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, who represents Florida’s 13th District.
Current law under the D.C. Home Rule Act requires Congress to approve extending presidential control of the police force after 30 days.
The president declared a crime emergency for D.C. on Aug. 11, so the deadline for a vote on the extension is only a few weeks away.
“Our resolution is straightforward: if the president determines that continued federal control is necessary to keep D.C. safe, he should have the authority to do so,” Luna said in a statement. “This is about restoring safety, enforcing the law and cleaning up the streets of our capital city.”
Luna has been a vocal supporter of Trump. Soon after he returned to the White House this year, she introduced a bill to add him to the Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota.
Republican Rep. Andy Ogles, who represents Tennessee’s 5th District, has also said he is working on similar legislation.
House Republicans would likely pass the measure, though it would face opposition from Democrats in the U.S. Senate.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has vowed to fight “tooth and nail” against any extension of the D.C. police takeover.
Senate Democrats could block the extension with a filibuster.
Trump has floated the idea of getting around Congress by declaring a national emergency, though that would likely bring about a court battle, according to U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland.
Local lawmakers’ bill would block takeover extension
Van Hollen and other Democratic lawmakers have proposed their own legislation, which would terminate federalization of the D.C. police force.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, who represents Maryland’s 3rd District, and D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton are among the cosponsors of the legislation in the House.
It is also backed by the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, Rep. Robert Garcia.
Van Hollen plans to introduce the measure in the upper chamber.
But the legislation is not likely to move forward when lawmakers return next month, since Republicans strongly support the president’s crime crackdown in the District.
Six Republican governors have pledged to send National Guard troops from their states, to augment the 800 D.C. National Guard troops who were initially activated by the president.
Overall, close to 2,000 National Guard personnel will be on patrol in the District, though they don’t make arrests.
Most of them so far have been posted in prominent tourist areas, such as near the Lincoln Memorial and in front of Union Station.
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