President Donald Trump welcomes Mississippi Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves, left, to the stage at a rally at BancorpSouth Arena in Tupelo, Miss., Friday, Nov. 1, 2019. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
- The Mississippi governor said Wednesday that President Trump’s efforts to clean up crime in the nation’s capital are working.
Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves (R) announced Wednesday that he had approved an extension for the state National Guard’s deployment to help crackdown on crime in the nation’s capital. The extension moves the deployment through November 30.
Reeves was one of the Republican governors who stepped up following President Donald Trump’s call for National Guard assistance to combat a crimewave in Washington D.C. in August.
READ MORE: Governor Reeves approves MS National Guard deployment to support D.C. crime crackdown
Approximately 200 Mississippi National Guard Soldiers have been on the ground in D.C.
“We all know the left will never give him credit, but President Donald Trump’s efforts to clean up Washington are working,” Reeves shared on social media. “The brave men and women of the Mississippi National Guard have been instrumental in helping make that happen.”
The Mississippi governor responded to critics of his sending troops to D.C. in the weeks after their deployment, saying, “The MS National Guard members there all volunteered to go, all are on federal orders and all will remain so as long it takes.”
According to curated and analyzed datasets from The Baltimore Sun, during the 30 calendar days since Trump deployed the National Guard and federalized D.C.’s police force, “the total number of crimes reported dropped by 18% compared to the previous 30-day period.”
The Baltimore Sun continued, “From Aug. 11 to Sept. 9, D.C. reported 34% fewer thefts of motor vehicles compared to the previous 30 days, as the number of thefts dropped from 369 to 243. In 2024, D.C. reported 372 motor vehicle thefts from July 12 to Aug. 10 and 436 motor vehicle thefts from Aug. 11 to Sept. 9. For reported thefts of items inside motor vehicles, D.C. saw 411 in the first month of the mission, compared to 578 in the 30 days prior — a nearly 29% reduction.”
The Baltimore Sun also noted that “a spokesman for D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, declined to comment when asked how much credit Trump should receive for crime reductions in the city.”
Critics asked why Reeves would not deploy troops to Jackson, the Mississippi’s capital city, when it has been plagued with crime for years.
READ MORE: Reeves responds to critics over sending Mississippi National Guard to D.C.
Reeves maintained that he continues “to prioritize maintaining law and order throughout Mississippi, including significant investment in law enforcement in Jackson.”
“Working with the Legislature, [the governor] created the CCID and he signed legislation that turned the Capitol Police – which previously served primarily as security officers for state buildings – into a true law enforcement agency that can help fight back against crime in the city,” Reeves shared in September. “Through Capitol Police, the state of Mississippi hired approximately 175 police officers that were put on the streets to fight crime.”
The presence of those officers, and the more than 250 with the Jackson Police Department, led Reeves to decide not to send the National Guard into Mississippi’s capital city.
Frank Corder
