Pinto urges five incoming governors to withdraw Guard troops from DC

Pinto made the appeal during a D.C. Council session examining federal policing and military operations within the city. She asked the governors-elect of Georgia, Iowa, Nevada, Ohio and Texas to order their states’ troops out of the District when they take office next year, ideally on their first day.

Incoming governors should end National Guard deployments in DC

Five incoming Democratic governors have an opportunity to end the presence of 628 National Guard troops from their states in Washington, D.C., Councilmember Brooke Pinto said at a November 5 hearing. She called on the governors-elect of Georgia, Iowa, Nevada, Ohio and Texas to order withdrawals as soon as they take office, preferably on day one.

Pinto, who leads the Council’s panel on courts and public safety, highlighted worries voiced by families and educators about troops operating near schools. At an October gathering to hear community concerns at Bard High School, students described armed troops preparing weapons near school entrances and bus stops, and passing classroom windows during the school day.

The deployments also drew protests from Pinto and neighborhood parents. She said she wants congressional Democrats, who take the majority in January, to investigate federal operations in the District and bar federal personnel from wearing face coverings on city streets.

The troop presence began after a federal emergency declaration in August 2025. D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb has challenged the deployment in court, arguing that the administration lacks authority to send out-of-state Guard units into the District. A federal appeals court has not set a deadline for its decision.

Pinto presses governors to remove Guard troops from the capital

Brooke Pinto is urging incoming Democratic governors to pull 628 National Guard troops out of Washington, D.C., as soon as they take office. At a November 5 hearing, the councilmember named Georgia, Iowa, Nevada, Ohio and Texas, and called for withdrawal orders on the governors’ first day.

The request would put the new governors at the center of a dispute over the deployment. The Trump administration sent federal personnel into D.C. neighborhoods after declaring a state of emergency in August 2025. The Justice Department has argued that the deployment supports federal law enforcement missions and credited the military presence with a decline in local violent crime.

D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb is challenging the deployment in court, arguing the administration lacks authority to send other states’ Guard units into the District. During October court arguments, Justice Department lawyers warned that limiting presidential control of the Guard could impede federal deployments for inauguration ceremonies, large demonstrations and natural disasters.

Pinto also wants congressional Democrats to investigate federal operations and adopt regulations prohibiting federal personnel from using face coverings on streets in the District. The appeals court has no deadline for its ruling, and the incoming governors’ response to her demand remains unresolved.