House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) has expressed support for President Trump’s recent actions to address crime in Washington, D.C. The White House announced the activation of the D.C. National Guard and federalization of the Metropolitan Police Department as measures to enhance law enforcement efforts in the city.
“President Trump is rightly using executive power to take bold and necessary action to crack down on crime and restore law and order in Washington, D.C. For years, the D.C. Council’s radical, soft-on-crime agenda has emboldened criminals and put public safety at risk in our nation’s capital. Protecting all Americans and tackling crime are core conservative policy priorities, and today’s actions by the Trump Administration mark another promise kept. Alongside President Trump, the House Oversight Committee is also advancing legislative solutions to protect Americans in their capital city and plans to hold a hearing with the District Attorney General Brian Schwalb, D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson, and Mayor Muriel Bowser this September. The Committee looks forward to continuing its constitutional duty to oversee D.C. and will work with the Trump Administration to ensure a safe, beautiful, and prosperous capital,” said Chairman James Comer.
The House Oversight Committee oversees matters related to the District of Columbia. Under Comer’s leadership, it has worked on legislation including House Joint Resolution 26—which blocked revisions to D.C.’s criminal code—and House Joint Resolution 42 targeting an anti-police bill passed by the D.C. Council. Although H.J.Res 42 was vetoed by President Biden, pressure from Congress led local officials to roll back parts of their legislation.
In May 2024, H.R. 7530—known as the “D.C. Criminal Reform to Immediately Make Everyone Safer (D.C. CRIMES) Act”—passed in the House with bipartisan support but still faces further legislative hurdles. Congressman Byron Donalds (R-FL) recently reintroduced similar legislation.
On June 10, 2025, Comer praised passage of H.R. 2096—the Protecting Our Nation’s Capital Emergency Act—which aims to restore due process protections for police officers in Washington, D.C., aligning with President Trump’s executive order focused on public safety.
James Comer currently represents Kentucky's 1st district in Congress after succeeding Ed Whitfield in 2016; he previously served in Kentucky's state legislature from 2001 through 2012. Born in Carthage, Tennessee in 1972, Comer now resides in Tompkinsville and holds a BS degree from Western Kentucky University earned in 1993.
