The showdown in Washington is the latest attempt by Trump to test the boundaries of his legal authority to carry out his tough-on-crime agenda, relying on obscure statutes and a supposed state of emergency to speed up the mass deportation of people in the United States illegally.

The White House has backed off plans for a full takeover of the D.C. police force and will allow for the city’s police chief to remain in charge after a judge indicated they would block the move.

President Donald Trump pledged Wednesday to make Washington "crime-free" as he spoke at the Kennedy Center."We're going to be essentially crime-free. This is going to be a beacon, and it's going to also serve as an example of what can be done,

Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser wrote on social media that “there is no statute that conveys the District’s personnel authority to a federal official.”