Rep slams Trump administration over public safety after D.C. shooting
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Rep. James Walkinshaw, D-Va., accused the Trump administration of “taking its eye off the ball” on public safety following Wednesday’s shooting in Washington, D.C.
Early Wednesday, two West Virginia National Guard members were seriously injured in a shooting just blocks from the White House. Authorities said the attack was targeted and the FBI is investigating the incident as a possible act of terrorism.
Appearing on CNN’s “The Lead with Jake Tapper,” Walkinshaw was asked if the latest shooting had changed his thinking about the safety of National Guard officers stationed in the city.
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Rep. James Walkinshaw, D-Va., criticized the Trump administration’s public safety plan. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images)
“Look, as I’ve said publicly, most Democrats in Congress don’t think we should have National Guard men and women in our cities,” Walkinshaw said. “But if and when that is going to happen, I think it is incumbent upon the administration to lay out a clear plan to ensure their protection. One of the concerns I plan to raise as a new member of the Homeland Security Committee is the way the Trump administration is taking its eye off wholesale in many critical public safety areas and shifting resources to mass deportation efforts.”
He continued: “So they divert resources away from illegal gun smuggling, away from transnational crime, away from counterterrorism, both domestic and foreign. And they need to get their eye on the ball again and focus on keeping us all safe here in the United States.”
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National Guard soldiers rally following the shooting of two fellow soldiers in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday (Mark Schiefelbein/AP Photo)
Walkinshaw reiterated that he still does not believe National Guard members are needed in the city and called on the Trump administration to direct those resources elsewhere.
“There are many things the federal government can do to help keep Washington, D.C., and other cities across the country safe,” Walkinshaw said. “I mentioned some of these things. They can do more, much more, to prevent illegal gun trafficking. They can do much more to prevent human trafficking and child sex trafficking. They’re taking their eye off that ball. I think it’s a better use of federal resources by the National Guard than the National Guard men and women in American cities, including the District of Columbia.”
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Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment.
It was learned that the suspect in the attack was an Afghan citizen. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)
Law enforcement sources confirmed to Fox News Digital that the gunman accused of shooting National Guard members is Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national who entered the country in 2021.
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