On Wednesday afternoon, JD Vance, a prominent political figure, was met with a chorus of boos and heckles while engaging in a photo opportunity with National Guard troops at Union Station in Washington, D.C. The event took place as he distributed burgers to the soldiers who were deployed just last week by former President Donald Trump. Joining Vance were Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller.
As Vance expressed gratitude to the troops by stating, “We appreciate everything you’re doing,” a crowd of demonstrators outside the station voiced their dissent. The protesters chanted slogans such as “Free DC!” and “From DC to Palestine, occupation is a crime.” Their vocal opposition intensified as Vance, Hegseth, and Miller attempted to speak to reporters, with expletives also being hurled in their direction.
In response to a question about the presence of troops at Union Station instead of areas with higher crime rates, Vance remarked that such areas were “overrun with vagrants, drug addicts, the chronically homeless, and the mentally ill.” He asserted that visitors to the city did not feel safe and passionately stated, “This should be a monument to American greatness,” adding, “We do not have to live like this.”
Vance took a moment to comment on the protests, expressing his bewilderment at the demographics of the demonstrators. “It’s kind of bizarre that we have a bunch of old, primarily white people who are out there protesting the policies that keep people safe when they’ve never felt danger in their entire lives,” he said. He further appropriated the protesters’ chants, declaring, “Let’s free Washington DC, so that young families can walk around and feel safe and secure. That’s what we’re trying to free DC from.”
Echoing Vance's sentiments, Miller dismissed the protesters as “crazy communists,” stating, “We’re going to ignore these stupid white hippies that all need to go home and take a nap because they’re all over 90 years old, and we’re going to get back to the business of protecting the American people and the citizens of Washington DC.”
This event comes on the heels of President Biden's decision to federalize the city’s Metropolitan Police Department and direct Hegseth to mobilize National Guard troops. The President's actions were framed as a crackdown on “crime, bloodshed, bedlam, and squalor” in what he described as the nation’s “lawless” capital, despite the fact that crime rates have been falling sharply, with violent crime reaching a 30-year low.
Currently, an estimated 1,900 troops have been deployed in Washington D.C., with more than half coming from Republican-led states such as Louisiana and South Carolina. Apart from Union Station, these troops are primarily stationed in downtown areas, including the National Mall and various metro stops.
