The capital has a very special status in the United States. It is part of the District of Columbia and therefore not a state. Washington is managed directly by Congress and depends on national authorities. As the Republicans regained control on Tuesday, they will have a free hand to implement their policies on the city of the White House and the Capitol. Given what Trump said on this subject, some people have cause for concern.
This city of around 680,000 inhabitants, wedged between Maryland and Virginia, is by far not the worst in the country. On the contrary, even. There are certain neighborhoods that are a little scary, it’s true. But there are also magnificent corners, with its ancestral monuments, its National Mall, museums everywhere, the superb streets of Georgetown, successful universities and the welcoming banks of the Potomac. But since more than 90% of voters vote Democratic, Donald Trump would like to clean it up anyway.
“We will take back control of our nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., which is horribly managed, and we will clean it up, renovate it and rebuild it so that it is no longer a nightmare of murder and crime,” explained the former and new president during the campaign. It will become the most beautiful capital in the world. Right now, if you go there and visit the Jefferson Memorial, the Washington Monument and a few other places like that, you end up getting shot, mugged and raped.”
It didn’t happen to us in about ten days there, and not always when we returned very early… “It doesn’t make me popular there, but we’re also going to change the mayor there,” Trump explained again. It’s not going to make me popular, but I had to say it.” However, nothing to shake the local elected official, Muriel Bowser, who has seen others, she who has been in charge of the City for almost ten years.
“I have worked with three presidents, including President-elect Trump, and congressional leaders from both parties to advance our district’s priorities. Driven by our values, we will pursue a collaborative approach to our federal priorities in our city,” Muriel Bowser said Wednesday in a press release about Donald Trump’s victory. However, his functions risk being limited if the new president places the city under supervision.
Very progressive, the people of the capital may tremble for certain local freedoms that Trump, somewhat out of revenge, could restrict. Like the laws on the carrying of weapons, on the sale of cannabis, assisted suicide, abortion or even immigration… Or, like many of Trump’s cookie-cutter remarks, he has already forgotten what he said a few days earlier and everything will continue as before.
Everything you need to know about the American presidential election
The 2024 American presidential election took place on November 5, 2024. To everyone’s surprise, the result was not close and Donald Trump claimed on Wednesday morning (Swiss time) a “political victory never seen before in our country”. To find out everything about this election and its consequences, click here.
