Hegseth clears National Guard to roll military vehicles and patrol boats through DC

Hegseth put his name on two memos dated Oct. 29 that expand the Guard's footprint in the capital, according to copies obtained by The Associated Press. The paperwork approves 60 military police cars, tactical vehicles, patrol boats and portable light towers for what it calls increased patrols. Troops can carry rifles during certain operations, but not inside Metro rail stations.

The armed men and war-zone vehicles will look familiar. President Donald Trump first sent the Guard into Washington in August 2025 for what he billed as a crime-fighting mission, and tactical vehicles plus gun-carrying troops turned up at city landmarks. Since then, Guard members have backed law enforcement, walked neighborhoods, cleared homeless camps and pitched in on citywide cleanups.

Hegseth is holding the line on headcount. The memos cap deployed Guard members at 3,500, down from a summertime peak of roughly 5,000 during America's 250th anniversary celebrations. Nearly 3,100 Guard members from various states are in the city, including more than 500 from Georgia — the biggest contingent after the District itself, which had 514 involved as of Monday.

The Guard is being asked to do more against gangs and drug traffickers. Hegseth is keeping six analysts on the job to tackle organized drug distribution in D.C., and troops supporting anti-gang and drug operations can now carry rifles alongside their standard pistols. One memo hands the U.S. Marshals Service the D.C. Guard's 260th Special Purpose Brigade — a unit that served as a quick reaction force — to help protect key federal leaders and defend federal facilities.

Not every ask got a yes. A Marshals Service request for National Guard helicopters, or for troops to clean up abandoned tires in parts of the city, was turned down in a Nov. 4 memo. The Pentagon confirmed to the AP that Hegseth had authorized continued use of Guard personnel and capabilities in support of the Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful mission.

The District isn't standing down. It sued in September 2025 over the deployment, arguing the mobilization is an illegal use of the military for domestic law enforcement. A federal appeals court panel heard arguments Oct. 14 after a lower court sided with the city. Meanwhile, the boosted presence lands amid a rough stretch for the mission: a Georgia serviceman was arrested for pulling a gun on a fellow Guard member, another Guard member was arrested for carrying an unauthorized firearm, and a Guardsman was shot while trying to break up a fight.