Washington DC - Protests have erupted in Washington DC after President Donald Trump ramped up the deployment of federal law enforcement officers for 24/7 patrols across the city.

DC residents lined up to protest on Wednesday night, denouncing the Trump administration's decision to deploy the National Guard to the capital's streets with signs that read "Hands of DC" and "Go home, fascists."

The demonstrations follow the announcement on Wednesday that Trump would escalate the deployment of National Guard troops so that they are patrolling DC around the clock.

Fears circulate around what the city's mayor, Muriel Bowser, called an "authoritarian push" by the Trump administration, who framed the takeover as an attempt to crack down on crime and homelessness.

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National Guard officers have been present across DC since Trump announced the unprecedented deployment on Monday, but ramped up significantly on Wednesday – a trend that's expected to continue throughout the week.

Since Trump's deployment began, around 100 arrests have been made across DC, including 43 on Tuesday night, carried out by a combination of federal officers and the municipal police.

"I’ve seen them right here at the subway," one resident told the Associated Press. "It’s more fearful now because even though you’re a law-abiding citizen, here in DC, you don’t know, especially because I'm African American."

In a raging post on Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump doubled down on his claims of a crime epidemic and said DC has "one of the Highest Rates of Crime in the World, more than many of the most violent Third World Countries."

Using increasingly authoritarian language, he accused city officials of corruption and said they were making up statistics to suggest that the crime problem in DC is not as bad as he says it is.

"The Violent Crime Rate in DC has worsened, and the Murder Rate has essentially DOUBLED in just over a decade – But these are only the 'official' statistics released by corrupt City Officials. The REAL numbers are many times worse," Trump wrote.

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The president also compared DC to cities including Mexico City in Mexico, Bogotá in Colombia, Islamabad in Pakistan, and Addis Ababa in Ethiopia. He even claimed that the city had a crime rate ten times higher than that of Fallujah, Iraq.

"The REAL Crime Rates are probably five to ten times what has been reported," Trump said. "DC has been under siege from thugs and killers, but now, DC is back under Federal Control where it belongs."

"The White House is in charge. The Military and our Great Police will liberate this City, scrape away the filth, and make it safe, clean, habitable and beautiful once more!"