Washington today and soon Chicago and New York: Donald Trump announced Friday his intention to deploy federal law enforcement in these two Democratic megacities, officially to combat crime that he claims is endemic.

At the same time, a Pentagon official said that the more than 1,900 National Guard soldiers deployed for the past ten days in the federal capital, Washington, would soon be "armed."

On August 11, the American president, elected on a platform of fighting immigration and crime, announced that he was placing law enforcement in Washington under the authority of his administration and that he was deploying the National Guard, a reserve military force, there.

According to the Republican, the federal capital, which is not attached to any state and enjoys a unique institutional status, is "invaded by violent gangs" and must be "cleaned up."

Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser, who governs some 700,000 people, had to let it happen but denied a surge in violence, saying instead that the crime rate this year was "at its lowest level in 30 years."

But Donald Trump doesn't believe it.

In a lengthy address from the Oval Office, initially focused on the 2026 World Cup in North America, he promised that his Conservative government would continue to "make our cities very, very safe."

- "Authoritarian power" -

"Chicago is a mess," the city is run by "a particularly incompetent mayor," Mr. Trump accused of this large city in Illinois (north), on the shores of the Great Lakes, known throughout the world and led by Democratic mayor Brandon Johnson.

"People in Chicago are screaming for us to come. They're wearing red hats like this one. Beautiful African-American women are saying, 'Please President Trump, come to Chicago,'" the 79-year-old billionaire added, wearing a red hat emblazoned with the slogan "Trump was right about everything."

"Chicago will be next, and then we will help New York," the president promised again.

In response, Democratic Illinois Governor JB Pritzker wrote on his X account that "people are NOT asking for an authoritarian power to take over major cities" in the United States.

In Washington, "on the orders of the Secretary of Defense (Pete Hegseth), members of the National Guard, supporting the mission to reduce the crime rate in our nation's capital, will soon be on mission with their service weapons," announced a Pentagon official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

- Armored vehicles in Washington -

He said the National Guard command in Washington "retains authority over law enforcement in coordination with municipal police and federal law enforcement" from other agencies dispatched to the capital.

There are currently more than 1,900 National Guard troops -- some in front of their armored vehicles outside the city's train station or along the sprawling National Mall, home to the nation's major institutions and monuments.

In addition to the initial 800 troops, Republican states have recently sent troops to Washington at Donald Trump's request, including West Virginia, South Carolina, Ohio, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Tennessee.

Before Washington, the US president had already deployed the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles, California, a state led by Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom, in response to large demonstrations against the Republican government's anti-immigration policies.

It was the first such deployment against the will of a local governor since 1965.