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The Journal of the Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration at The George Washington University

Abstract

In the wake of the January 6 insurrection and the inauguration of a new president of the United States (US), the National Guard and Washington, DC have both captured the national spotlight. The lack of police response to the attack on the Capitol has largely been considered a failure, and DC Mayor Muriel Bowser has blamed her inability as Mayor to call in the National Guard when needed as a large part of the reason why more was not done, reiterating her calls for DC statehood. With a new slight Senate majority, Democrats have reintroduced a bill that would make DC the 51st U.S. state, fueled at least in part by the arguments raised about the National Guard chain of command throughout 2020 and into 2021.

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