D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said Wednesday that she doesn’t “know what’s behind” President Trump saying that his administration is “testing” the idea of assuming control of the city or how to respond to that statement.
The Democratic mayor did discuss her working relationship with the White House and how she has interacted more with Mr. Trump and his staff than any other previous occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW.
She also shared how her team has addressed issues frequently cited by Mr. Trump, particularly crime.
“Our approach to working with the president has been a good one, to focus on our shared priorities, which we have,” Ms. Bowser said at a press conference. “I don’t know the genesis of that statement or what he was asked. I have no idea, but I do know what we have accomplished in this city with driving down crime, not just last year, but the previous year, and our work to drive down crime continues.”
But Ms. Bowser, who appeared testy while taking questions about the president’s comments, seemed nonplussed by his attempts to negotiate through press conferences.
“These comments have been made for two years,” she said.
During a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Mr. Trump said his administration was looking at ways to possibly exert authority over the nation’s capital.
“We could run D.C. We’re looking at D.C. We don’t want crime in D.C. We want to run the city well,” the president said, adding that chief of staff Susie Wiles had been in touch with the mayor.
Ms. Bowser said Wednesday that she wasn’t going to disclose how often she speaks with Mr. Trump’s surrogates.
Mr. Trump first pitched the idea of a federal takeover in February after complaining about homeless encampments being an eyesore throughout the city, especially when hosting foreign leaders.
The president seemed to drop the issue after Ms. Bowser’s administration cleared some tents near the State Department.
In March, the president signed an executive order cracking down on quality-of-life crimes such as vandalism, public intoxication and traffic violations in the District. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, which prosecutes most crimes in the city, directed its staff to begin bringing federal charges against ex-cons caught with guns.
Ms. Bowser countered by saying Mr. Trump’s observations about the city, such as with crime, stemmed largely from his first term during the heart of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Metropolitan Police Department data shows violent crime is down 25% in 2025 as the city continues to distance itself from the generational spike in shootings, carjackings and robberies that overwhelmed the District two years ago.
Still, Ms. Bowser acknowledged Wednesday that limited Home Rule can put the District in a vulnerable position with the federal government.
The 1973 law allows D.C. residents to elect a city council and mayor to address local matters, but Congress retains final say on which city laws are approved.
For example, Republicans spearheaded a bipartisan effort in 2023 to block a major rewrite to the city’s criminal code after critics found the new legal guidelines to be too lenient on criminals.
• Jeff Mordock contributed to this report.
