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Evening Report

Monday, August 25 | By Elizabeth Crisp

Trump escalates DC crime-fighting push

President Trump on Monday escalated his efforts to tackle crime in the nation's capital with a new executive order aimed at ending cashless bail policies in Washington, D.C.

"Cashless bail, we're ending it," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "But we're starting by ending it in D.C. And that we have the right to do through federalization."

The president has railed against policies that allow some accused offenders to be released without financial penalties. The latest move comes as D.C. heads into the third week of the president's crime crackdown, federalizing the city's police and dispatching National Guard through the District.

What's at stake: Cashless bail proponents have argued in D.C. and other major cities across the country that cash requirements disproportionately harm low-income offenders who cannot afford to post bond. Trump and other critics have argued the cashless-bail practice allows offenders to more easily return to streets.

Meanwhile: Trump on Monday appeared to back off on his threat to deploy the military to crack down on crime in other Democratic-led cities such as Baltimore and Chicago, threats that have sparked intense pushback from local leaders.

"I was telling some of the people that in a certain way you really want to be asked to go. I hate to barge in on a city and then be treated horribly by corrupt politicians and bad politicians," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

NATIONAL GUARD NOW ARMED IN DC

A Pentagon official acknowledged over the weekend that some National Guard troops in the nation's capital have begun carrying weapons.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signed off on an order last week authorizing the move, and members of the Joint Task Force-DC began carrying service-issue weapons Sunday evening.

The directive stipulates that the use of force is only permitted "as a last resort and solely in response to an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm," a Pentagon spokesperson said.

NOBEL TALK TURNS TO CRIME

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) pitched Trump's D.C. crime takeover as the latest argument for the president to receive the Nobel Peace Prize that he's long coveted.

Trump and his allies have been arguing that he should be bestowed the prestigious award, which was given to former President Obama during his first term. While most allies point to Trump's various efforts abroad to justify giving the president the award, Johnson said efforts in D.C. also bolster Trump's case.

"There are MANY reasons why President Trump deserves the Nobel Peace Prize – but 11 straight days with ZERO murders in Washington, D.C. might top the list," Johnson wrote in a social media post Monday. "SAFER streets. STRONGER communities. AMERICA IS BACK."

💡Perspectives:

• The New Republic: Trump's Next 'Hellhole': Chicago. Democrats, Get Ready for a Fight.

• The Hill: Massive crime drop in DC — city sees zero-murder week.

Read more:

• Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) on Monday renewed his call for Trump to visit Baltimore, in the latest escalation of their feud.

• Fox News analyst Brit Hume blasted Trump over an executive order seeking to crack down on people who burn or "desecrate" the American flag.

Programming note: Evening Report's Jonathan Easley returns Tuesday

CATCH UP QUICK

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was wrongly deported but returned to the U.S., is being held at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in anticipation of new deportation proceedings.
Cracker Barrel has made a new "promise" to customers after its updated logo sparked backlash from fans of the restaurant chain.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) again pushed back on Trump's criticism about the "blue-slip" custom.

NEWS THIS AFTERNOON

Trump plans to meeting with North Korean leader

Trump said he wants to meet again with North Korea leader Kim Jong-un, following a request from South Korea President Lee Jae Myung to help usher peace on the peninsula.

The South Korean leader argued during an Oval Office sit-down Monday that Trump is "the only person who can make progress on this issue."

Trump said a meeting with the North Korean leader would take place "in the appropriate future," adding he would like to meet Kim this year.

Trump became the first U.S. president to enter North Korea during his first term, but Lee said during a White House meeting with Trump on Monday that another summit would be helpful to ease tensions abroad.

"Thanks to your efforts when you were in office during your first term, the situation on the Korean peninsula was stable. But, during the short— the hiatus where you were out of office, North Korea developed further its nuclear and missile capabilities and that lead to a deterioration on the situation of the Korean peninsula," Lee said in their Oval Office meeting.

The Hill's Alex Gangitano has more on the developing talks.

💡Perspectives:

• The Wall Street Journal: Why Ukraine Won't Give Up Donetsk.

• The New York Times: He Was a Star in Russia's Media World. Now He's a Corporal in Ukraine's Army.

• New York Magazine: The Nightmare Redistricting Scenario for Democrats.

• The Washington Post: Stateless by design: How India is erasing its citizens.

Read more:

• Trump said Monday he is considering a push to rename the Department of Defense to the Department of War.

• Russia accused Ukraine on Sunday of launching drone attacks that sparked a fire at a nuclear power plant in its western Kursk region overnight.

IN OTHER NEWS

Trump plots challenge to Calif. redistricting push

Trump indicated he plans to file a lawsuit against California over its plan to redraw the state's congressional lines and against the use of "blue slips" in the Senate.

"I think I'm going to be filing a lawsuit pretty soon, and I think we're going to be very successful in it. We're going to [be] filing it through the Department of Justice, that's going to happen," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) pressed state lawmakers to move toward redrawing the state's congressional maps after Trump pushed Texas to adopt new districts more favorable to Republicans ahead of the 2026 midterms.

💡Perspectives:

• The Hill: So much for states' rights: Now Trump wants to control the voting process.

• The New York Times: Wilted Lettuce. Rotten Strawberries. Here's What Happens When You Round Up Farmworkers.

Read more:

• Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Ken Martin praised his party's efforts to push back on GOP-friendly congressional maps in Texas, arguing Democrats can't be the only ones who "play by the rules anymore."

• Trump threatened major broadcast networks in a string of social media posts late Sunday, suggesting they be fined or taken off the air due to their polling and coverage of his administration.

• The GOP is growing more optimistic about Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears's bid to become Virginia's next governor.