Photo: Alamy
President Donald Trump released a statement on social media Wednesday night calling on Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser to “clean up” the city’s homeless encampments.
Trump warned that the federal government would otherwise be “forced” to do it for her, sharing the comments on Truth Social.
“We have notified the Mayor of Washington, D.C., that she must clean up all of the unsightly homeless encampments in the City, specifically including the ones outside of the State Department, and near the White House. If she is not capable of doing so, we will be forced to do it for her!” the president warned.
“Washington, D.C. must become CLEAN and SAFE! We want to be proud of our Great Capital again. Thank you Mayor Bowser for your efforts on behalf of the Citizens of our Country. Hopefully you will be successful!” he added.
The statement came one day after the mayor’s office stated the District of Columbia would rename the city’s Black Lives Matter Plaza. Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., recently introduced a bill to allow Bowser to change the plaza’s name or lose federal funding.
The strong words also come after reports that Trump was expected to sign an executive order last month to clean up Washington.
Bowser acknowledged that the White House briefed her on the potential executive order.
“We haven’t seen it and we have had a briefing that I would call at the 30,000-foot level,” she said. “And I’m not sure if it was complete. So, that’s why I have asked to see anything that they would move related to the District. And they have committed to working through it with us, to telling us what the intent is.”
“I am hard pressed to comment on any specifics other than, I know that the president is very focused on beautification issues,” Bowser also stated.
Also related is the proposed BOWSER Act introduced last month by Utah Sen. Mike Lee, and Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles, both Republicans.
The act, with the name standing for “Bringing Oversight to Washington and Safety to Every Resident” would repeal Washington’s home rule for one year, but did not specify how the city would be run instead.
