MSNBC legal analyst Anthony Coley said Wednesday on Morning Joe that Democrats on Washington, D.C.’s city council created the “political opening” that allowed President Donald Trump to take control of the city’s police force. Coley, who lives in D.C., said frustration over crime—particularly juvenile offenses—has left many residents dissatisfied with local leadership.
“There is a gap between what the data shows and how many Washingtonians feel,” Coley said, noting that half of D.C. residents see crime as a serious or extremely serious problem. He pointed to everyday frustrations, such as basic goods being locked behind plexiglass at stores, as fueling public perception of unsafe streets.
While juvenile arrests are down in D.C., Coley contrasted this with Baltimore, where such arrests have risen. He also highlighted $1 billion in federal funds withheld by Congress, which could otherwise be used to hire more officers. Coley criticized some of the D.C. council’s legislation as being too lenient on juvenile offenders and repeat criminals, saying those laws contributed to the political climate that Trump is now using to justify his actions.
At the same time, Coley rejected the scale of Trump’s intervention—calling the policing takeover a “political stunt” designed to exploit public fears. Still, he stressed that Democrats “never want to give your political opponent an opening to address the needs that many of your constituents have,” arguing that local missteps have made Trump’s move more politically viable.
Trump announced this week that he was placing the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department under federal control and deploying National Guard troops to address what he called rampant crime, gang activity, and public disorder in the nation’s capital.
