August 14, 2025

Just Security Podcast: What Just Happened – Federalization of Law Enforcement in Washington DC

This week, the Trump administration took over command of the D.C. police department and surged federal law enforcement officers and National Guard units into the city. While the United States has a long tradition of leaving most policing to state and local agencies, federal law enforcement has specific powers, and there are well-established limits on the use of military forces for domestic law enforcement, but the rules for DC are particular. In this episode, host David Aaron is joined by Carrie Cordero, General Counsel at the Center for a New American Security.

Listen to the full interview on Just Security.

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