DC Police Union Chief: Federal takeover a ‘phenomenal difference’ for city in crisis

D.C. Police Union Chairman Gregg Pemberton says President Donald Trump’s federal takeover of the Metropolitan Police Department is the best thing to happen to Washington, D.C., in years.

Speaking on The Jason Rantz Show on Seattle Red 770 AM, Pemberton described the results as making “a phenomenal difference” and credited federal agents and the National Guard with helping restore order to neighborhoods long plagued by violent crime.

“This is a welcome change,” Pemberton said. “Our concern here is that this is a temporary fix, and after this 30-day window… these federal agents and these National Guardsmen are going to pack up and leave. Unless this underlying legislation the city council passed five years ago is undone or repealed or amended in some way, we’re going to be left holding the bag with the same problem we had that got us here.”

Staffing crisis and failed reforms

Pemberton traced the city’s public safety failures back to the 2020 Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Act, which he argues “hamstrung cops” and drove hundreds off the force. D.C. has an authorized strength of 4,000 sworn officers but only 3,180 remain, leaving more than 800 vacancies. To fill the gap, officers are burdened with 2 million hours of mandatory overtime annually.

“Frankly, where we are right now is that we cannot keep a handle on crime in the city,” he said. “That’s why we need assistance from these federal agents or even the National Guard to help us patrol these areas.”

Lazy ‘authoritarian’ claims

Despite critics labeling Trump’s move “authoritarian,” Pemberton says the results speak for themselves. He described driving through once-dangerous neighborhoods that now feel transformed.

“Some of these neighborhoods… it was like driving through Mayberry,” Pemberton said. “There was no one on the streets. It was quiet. There were kids out playing. There’s a palpable difference… based on the weekend prior.”

According to the White House, since the August 7 takeover, more than 450 arrests have been made, 68 firearms seized, and several homeless encampments cleared.

Pemberton said both residents and rank-and-file officers “love the help” and feel safer. “The citizens were ecstatic. They were actually exuberant,” he explained. “Everyone else—police officers, citizens alike—are all thrilled that there’s actually criminals being held accountable here in the district.”

Questioning the numbers

While the city touts declining crime, Pemberton says the data is being manipulated.

But Pemberton isn’t convinced. He cited cases of shootings being downgraded to assaults and robberies to thefts, along with reports of commanders retroactively changing felonies into misdemeanors.

“Even if we stipulate that those numbers are right, there’s still nothing to be proud of,” he argued. “We should be doing everything we can to staff this police department and get crime down. I just don’t understand how we can normalize 200 homicides a year in the nation’s capital.”

The bigger picture

Pemberton says the federal action is a direct consequence of the D.C. Council’s radical anti-police agenda.

“If you’re concerned about federal intervention… then you should be much more careful about the legislation that you pass,” he said. “These people would have never come in here and intervened” had the council not broken the system.

As the debate continues over whether Trump’s actions are heavy-handed or necessary, Pemberton leaves no doubt about where he stands.

“This is a phenomenal difference,” he repeated. For residents who’ve lived in fear, it may be the first time in years they agree with the union chief—and with the president.

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