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RedState
Article misinformation risk ★★★★★ 4.6/5 Critical misinformation · 3 checked claims
category/news-and-politics

Proof We Can Have Nice Things — Hegseth Celebrates Heroes of the National Guard As Crime Plummets in DC

RedState praises the National Guard's role in Washington, D.C., saying Trump signed Executive Order 14333 to deploy the Guard in August 2025, and quoting Secretary of the Army Pete Hegseth claiming D.C.'s crime rate fell “from the highest in the world” to the “lowest recorded” in 12 months, attributing the decline to Guard-led enforcement.

Open the original RedState article ↗

Misleading
Public importance 70/100

“In August 2025, President Trump signed Executive Order 14333 directing the National Guard to patrol the streets of Washington, D.C., to crack down on crime.”

Attributed to RedState (article)

✓ Proof standard met 4 reachable references Independent-source requirement passed
Original context and attribution

Article states: "In August 2025, President Trump signed Executive Order 14333, 'Crime Emergency in the District of Columbia,' directing the National Guard to patrol the D.C. streets and crack down on the rampant crime."

What the proof shows

Executive Order 14333 (Aug. 11, 2025) did declare a “crime emergency” in Washington, D.C. and directed the Mayor to provide Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) services for federal purposes, but EO 14333 itself does not direct the National Guard to patrol D.C. streets. A separate Presidential Memorandum issued the same day (“Restoring Law and Order in the District of Columbia”) directed the Secretary of Defense to mobilize the D.C. National Guard, and a later Executive Order (EO 14339, Aug. 25, 2025) ordered the Defense Secretary to create and prepare a specialized unit within the D.C. National Guard and directed states’ Guards to be made available. The RedState wording conflates EO 14333 with the memorandum and later EO(s): it is accurate that federal action and National Guard deployments followed in August 2025, but inaccurate to say EO 14333 itself directed the National Guard to patrol streets.

Corrected version

On August 11, 2025 President Trump signed Executive Order 14333 declaring a crime emergency in Washington, D.C. and federalizing the Metropolitan Police Department; a separate Presidential Memorandum that day directed the Secretary of Defense to mobilize the District of Columbia National Guard, and a later Executive Order (14339, Aug. 25, 2025) ordered the creation and preparation of specialized National Guard units for public‑order duties.

Automated evidence confidence: 0%

References and proof

Every link was reachable when published. Each proof point states how that source bears on the claim.

Official data Contradicts

DECLARING A CRIME EMERGENCY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA ↗

The White House
Proof point

Section 2. Services of the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia. I determine that special conditions of an emergency nature exist that require the use of the Metropolitan Police Department ... Effective immediately, the Mayor of the District of Columbia (Mayor) shall provide the services of the Metropolitan Police force for Federal purposes for the maximum period permitted under section 740 of the Home Rule Act.

Official data Supports

Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Restores Law and Order in the District of Columbia ↗

The White House (Fact Sheet)
Proof point

The Memorandum directs the Secretary of Defense to mobilize the District of Columbia National Guard to address the epidemic of crime in our Nation’s capital. The District of Columbia National Guard will remain mobilized until law and order is restored.

Official data Supports

ADDITIONAL MEASURES TO ADDRESS THE CRIME EMERGENCY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA (Executive Order 14339) ↗

The White House
Proof point

The Secretary of Defense shall, subject to the availability of appropriations and applicable law, immediately create and begin training, manning, hiring, and equipping a specialized unit within the District of Columbia National Guard, subject to activation under Title 32 of the United States Code, that is dedicated to ensuring public safety and order in the Nation’s capital.

Official data Contradicts

Federal Register / Vol. 90, No. 165 (Executive Order 14333 published) ↗

Federal Register (GovInfo)
Proof point

Executive Order 14333 of August 11, 2025 — Declaring a Crime Emergency in the District of Columbia (full text published in the Federal Register). (Text shows EO invokes section 740 of the Home Rule Act and orders MPD services for Federal purposes.)

False
Public importance 70/100

“Pete Hegseth said that in twelve months the crime rate in Washington, D.C., went "from the highest in the world—to the lowest recorded in the history of our nation's capital."”

Attributed to Pete Hegseth (quoted in the article / tweet by @StephenM)

✓ Proof standard met 4 reachable references Independent-source requirement passed
Original context and attribution

Article quotes Hegseth at the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force ceremony and via a posted tweet asserting a 12-month swing from the highest crime rate in the world to the lowest recorded in D.C. history.

What the proof shows

Contemporary reporting and primary crime data show (1) the hyperbolic sentence quoted in the RedState post was made by White House aide Stephen Miller (and circulated via a tweet/retweet), not verbatim by Pete Hegseth at the event; and (2) while Washington, D.C. has seen big recent declines in some crimes, official MPD and DOJ data contradict the extremes in the quote — crime was already falling (DOJ: 2024 violent crime down ~35% and a 30-year low) and D.C. never was unambiguously the “highest in the world” a year earlier nor did it suddenly become the all-time “lowest recorded” across historical series in a single 12‑month span. Independent analyses (Niskanen / Senate summaries) also find the National Guard deployment produced limited effects (mainly reductions in some opportunistic property crimes) and no measurable reduction in violent crime attributable to the Guard. Overall the attribution (that Hegseth said it) is incorrect and the substantive claim is exaggerated/misleading compared with official records and independent studies.

Corrected version

At the July 2, 2026 Meridian Hill Park ceremony White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller said, “In 12 months, the crime rates in D.C. have gone from among the highest in the world to the lowest recorded in the history of our nation's capital.” Pete Hegseth praised the National Guard at the same event. Official MPD and DOJ data show substantial recent declines in many offenses (DOJ: 2024 violent crime down ~35% vs. 2023), but D.C. was not demonstrably the world’s highest‑rate city 12 months earlier, nor did it become the unambiguous all‑time low in a single year; independent studies find the Guard produced limited, localized reductions in property crimes and no measurable effect on violent crime.

Automated evidence confidence: 0%

References and proof

Every link was reachable when published. Each proof point states how that source bears on the claim.

Independent reporting Contradicts

Proof We Can Have Nice Things — Hegseth Celebrates Heroes of the National Guard As Crime Plummets in DC ↗

RedState
Proof point

Includes embedded tweet text attributing the line to @StephenM: "In twelve months, the crime rate in D.C. has gone from the highest in the WORLD—TO THE LOWEST RECORDED IN THE HISTORY OF OUR NATION'S CAPITAL." (article also reports Hegseth hailed Guard members at the ceremony).

Official data Contradicts

District Crime Data at a Glance (MPD) — 2026 Year‑to‑Date Crime Comparison ↗

Metropolitan Police Department, District of Columbia (MPD)
Proof point

MPD year‑to‑date tables (2026) showing sharp drops in motor vehicle theft and theft from autos, and lower homicide counts year‑to‑date vs. 2025 (example table lines: Homicide 2025: 76 / 2026: 46 (-39%); Motor Vehicle Theft 2025: 2,378 / 2026: 1,088 (-54%)) — evidence of real declines but presented as preliminary and using DC offense definitions.

Official data Contradicts

Violent Crime in D.C. Hits 30 Year Low ↗

U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia
Proof point

Press release (Jan. 3, 2025): "Total violent crime for 2024 in the District of Columbia is down 35% from 2023 and is the lowest it has been in over 30 years," with breakdowns for homicides, robberies, carjackings, etc.

Independent reporting Contradicts

Summaries of independent studies and Senate oversight reports on the D.C. deployment ↗

LegalClarity (reporting summarizing Niskanen Center and Senate HSGAC findings)
Proof point

Summarizes a May/June 2026 Niskanen Center study and a Peters‑Kim (Senate HSGAC Democrats) report: Niskanen finds a ~24% reduction in opportunistic property crime where troops were posted but "no measurable effect on violent crime"; the Senate report notes large deployment costs and finds no directly attributable impact on violent crime.

Missing important context
Public importance 70/100

“The deployment of the National Guard and increased law-enforcement effort in D.C. caused the city's crime rate to plummet.”

Attributed to RedState (article / author Bob Hoge)

✓ Proof standard met 4 reachable references Independent-source requirement passed
Original context and attribution

The article credits "making an actual effort to enforce the law" and the National Guard for the "dramatic" reduction in crime in Washington, D.C.

What the proof shows

The broad factual pieces in the RedState claim are partly true (federal forces and a large enforcement surge were deployed to D.C. and many arrests/weapons seizures were reported). However the article’s core causal claim — that the National Guard deployment and stepped-up enforcement caused the city’s crime rate to “plummet” — omits important timing and data context. Official DOJ and city data show a large decline in violent crime in 2024 (well before the August 2025 Guard deployment), federal task forces and prosecutors have credited targeted investigations and prosecutions for reductions, and there are documented inquiries and reporting about possible misclassification/pressure inside MPD that make year‑to‑year comparisons less certain. Federal agencies (U.S. Marshals/DOJ) and the administration cite large arrest and seizure totals after the August 2025 surge (evidence that enforcement activity increased), but there is no published, peer‑reviewed causal analysis showing the Guard deployment itself drove the earlier or entire observed declines — and some reporting notes many arrests were immigration‑related rather than violent‑crime removals. Taken together, the impression that the Guard deployment was the clear cause of a dramatic citywide “plummet” is missing key context and overstates the established evidence.

Corrected version

Crime in Washington, D.C. fell substantially in 2024–2025 and continued to trend downward into 2026; federal enforcement operations (including National Guard support and large multi‑agency task forces) coincided with continued declines and produced thousands of arrests and firearms seizures, but much of the large decline began before the Guard’s August 2025 deployment and questions about MPD reporting practices and the mix of arrests (including many immigration‑related arrests) mean the Guard’s deployment has not been shown to be the primary or sole cause of the drop.

Automated evidence confidence: 0%

References and proof

Every link was reachable when published. Each proof point states how that source bears on the claim.

Official data Contradicts

Violent Crime in D.C. Hits 30 Year Low ↗

U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Columbia / Department of Justice
Proof point

Total violent crime for 2024 in the District of Columbia is down 35% from 2023 and is the lowest it has been in over 30 years... homicides are down 32%; robberies are down 39%; armed carjackings are down 53%... (Press release dated January 3, 2025).

Official data Supports

Make D.C. Safe & Beautiful Task Force Makes 10,000th Criminal Arrest, Removes 1,000th Illegal Firearm from City Streets ↗

U.S. Marshals Service (news release index/page including the DC task force milestone)
Proof point

The Make D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force surge operation has executed its 10,000th criminal arrest and seized its 1,000th illegal firearm since the launch in August, 2025 (U.S. Marshals Service news releases describing the task‑force activity).

Independent reporting Contradicts

With no end in sight to their deployment, National Guard troops still roam DC ↗

Associated Press
Proof point

Eight months after President Donald Trump declared a crime emergency... more than 2,500 troops remain... Figures show crime was already on the decline before, although those figures are being investigated after claims arose against local police that they may have been manipulated.

Research Contradicts

Crime Trends in U.S. Cities: Year‑End 2025 Update ↗

Council on Criminal Justice
Proof point

The decline in violent crime in 2025 extended across many major categories and many cities; determining causal drivers requires rigorous study — the report cautions against simple attribution to single policies or actions.

COMMUNITY EVIDENCE

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