Scoop: D.C. mayor urged AG against raising tensions with Trump, suing over National Guard
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D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, President Donald Trump and D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb. Photos: Alex Wong/Getty Images, Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images, JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser privately urged Attorney General Brian Schwalb to hold off on filing a lawsuit that would end the National Guard's deployment, sources tell Axios.
Why it matters: City Hall is divided on how to defuse President Trump's crime takeover, a dilemma that could play out nationwide as governors and mayors confront the threat of troop deployments in Chicago, Boston and beyond.
State of play: Mayor Bowser believes the answer is cooperation. Bowser speaks frequently with White House officials, who in turn have applauded her leadership.
- Meanwhile, Schwalb, an independently elected Democrat, is emerging as the top local opponent of Trump, earning praise from council members and progressives who want to fight fire with fire.
The latest: Schwalb's lawsuit filed Thursday morning accuses Trump of illegally using the military for local law enforcement — the District's most aggressive step so far to counter the president.
Inside the room: Bowser suggested that Schwalb delay the lawsuit, at least until after September 10. That will be Day 30 of Trump's police takeover, and the day his authority to take over the department expires under D.C.'s Home Rule Act.
- Bowser believes that date is a turning point where she can use goodwill with the White House to separately begin drawing down Trump's deployment of the National Guard, according to a source familiar with her thinking who, like others, asked for anonymity to speak candidly about private discussions.
- Schwalb had a call with Bowser and Council Chairman Phil Mendelson hours before the attorney general went forward with the lawsuit. Mendelson also expressed concerns about its timing, according to another source.
Reality check: Bowser's calculus may be wishful thinking, because the National Guard is expected to stick around through December, per CNN.
- A White House executive order also establishes a new National Guard unit devoted to public safety in D.C.
What they're saying: "My 100% focus is exiting the emergency," Bowser said at a press conference Thursday, declining to comment on the lawsuit's merits.
- Spokespeople for Bowser and Schwalb declined to comment for this story. Mendelson said in a statement: "I fully understand why the Attorney General has filed the lawsuit."
Context: Schwalb's lawsuit comes two days after a federal judge ruled that the deployment of the National Guard in Los Angeles to quell anti-ICE protests was illegal. (That ruling has since been temporarily lifted.)
- Schwalb announced his re-election bid Wednesday. Meanwhile, Congressional Republicans are planning to introduce a bill that would replace Schwalb with a presidential appointee and overhaul D.C.'s criminal justice laws, the Washington Post reported.