[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 141 (Tuesday, August 26, 2025)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E789]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     INTRODUCTION OF A BILL TO REQUIRE MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES 
PERFORMING ACTIVE SERVICE IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA IN RESPONSE TO AN 
 ORDER OF THE PRESIDENT WHICH RELATES TO CRIME OR CIVIL DISTURBANCE IN 
  THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA TO PARTICIPATE IN A PROGRAM SUBSTANTIALLY 
  SIMILAR TO THE BODY-WORN CAMERA PROGRAM OF THE METROPOLITAN POLICE 
                 DEPARTMENT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

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                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, August 26, 2025

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, today, I introduce a bill that would require 
members of the Armed Forces, including the National Guard, deployed in 
the District of Columbia in response to an order of the President 
relating to crime or civil disturbance in D.C. to participate in a 
program substantially similar to the body-worn camera program of D.C.'s 
police department, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). This bill 
would apply to the current deployment of troops and any future 
deployment.
  The use of body cameras by troops during deployments related to crime 
or civil disturbance in D.C. would promote transparency in the troops' 
interactions with the public and protect the public and the troops. MPD 
has a well-established program for the use of body cameras, as well as 
for the preservation and disclosure of body camera footage.
  The Trump administration has deployed more than 2,000 National Guard 
troops in D.C. This deployment is a raw assertion of power over the 
more than 700,000 disenfranchised D.C. residents, a majority of whom 
are Black and Brown; a politicization of the military; a disservice to 
the members of the National Guard and their families, unwarranted, and 
possibly unlawful with respect to both the D.C. National Guard and the 
state National Guards. I have urged the administration to remove these 
troops immediately.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

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