Live updates: Trump says use of National Guard in DC will serve as ‘beacon’ for NYC and LA in meandering Kennedy Center speech

Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser called President Donald Trump’s federal takeover of the city’s police force and deployment of the National Guard an “authoritarian push.”

“This is a time where community needs to jump in and we all need to do what we can in our space, in our lane, to protect our city and to protect our autonomy, to protect our Home Rule, and get to the other side of this guy, and make sure we elect a Democratic House so that we have a backstop to this authoritarian push,” Bowser said Tuesday, according to CNN.

Bowser also called for D.C. statehood, which Trump called “ridiculous.”

President Donald Trump’s approval ratings with Republicans have dropped as he handles fallout from the so-called “Epstein Files” and concerns about rising prices linked to his global tariffs.

President Donald Trump says Washington, D.C. will serve as a “beacon” for other major cities.

This comes after he deployed about 800 National Guard troops to the nation’s capital and federalized the D.C. police.

“We are going to do something and it’s going to serve as a beacon for New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and other places all over the country,” Trump said Wednesday from the Kennedy Center. “Our whole country is going to be so different and so great.”

The White House’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs has approved a proposed change to the H-1B visa program, according to a new report.

President Donald Trump said he’ll announce the new chair of the Federal Reserve “a little bit early.”

“I’ll be naming a new chairman sometime within the next — I think I’ll name it a little bit early, the new chairman,” Trump said Wednesday from the Kennedy Center. “I’m down to three or four names.”

Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s term is set to end in May.

President Donald Trump is set to host this year’s Kennedy Center Honors.

Andrew Feinberg has the full story:

President Donald Trump called the idea of statehood for Washington, D.C., “ridiculous.”

“Statehood is ridiculous,” he said. “We want to straighten the place out. Statehood is ridiculous. It’s unacceptable.”

Mayor Muriel Bowser called for the nation’s capital to become the 51st state after Trump deployed National Guard troops and federalized D.C. police.