National News
Department of Homeland Security agents stopped cars at a busy intersection for seat belt violations and broken taillights.
By Emma Uber, Lauren Morello, Washington Post
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Tensions over President Donald Trump’s deployment of federal law enforcement erupted on a busy Northwest Washington street Wednesday night as a mix of local and federal authorities pulled over drivers for seat belt violations or broken taillights while nearly 100 onlookers chanted: “Go home, fascists.”
The checkpoint, which appeared to begin around 8 p.m., included more than 20 law enforcement officers, many wearing face coverings and vests labeled “HSI” – Homeland Security Investigations. Some vests indicated agents were with Enforcement and Removal Operations, a branch of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement that arrests and removes undocumented immigrants. They stopped dozens of cars at the busy intersection of 14th and W streets NW, in front of a popular chain bakery, a veterinary clinic and a high-end outdoor apparel store.
At least two people were detained – one man speaking Spanish was loaded into an unmarked black pickup, while a D.C. police truck towed the red Kia he had been driving. A woman was handcuffed while the crowd gathered on the sidewalks booed and yelled at officers to “read the Constitution.”
A D.C. police spokesperson confirmed Wednesday night that the agency had helped transport a man who had been arrested and directed further questions about the checkpoint to the White House.
The show of federal force comes days after Trump deployed federal law enforcement and the National Guard onto D.C. streets. During a Monday news conference, he characterized the nation’s capital as a lawless wasteland, though violent crime is at 30-year lows. Federal presence began to ramp up Tuesday night; National Guard troops stationed Humvees near the Washington Monument, the U.S. Border Patrol assisted in the arrest of a dirt-bike driver in the Columbia Heights neighborhood and, according to a White House official, 43 arrests were made by federal law enforcement teams.
An officer at the scene told shouting onlookers that agents were checking for “driving eligibility” and “status.” When a ride-share vehicle was stopped, the passengers seated in the back of the car rolled down the windows and shouted to the crowd the questions law enforcement was asking their driver, which they said included questions about immigration status.
The White House did not respond to questions Wednesday night about how many people had been charged or whether people were questioned about their citizenship.
A group darted into a CVS store near the checkpoint and emerged with hastily made signs that read “Police checkpoint ahead” and “ICE,” then headed a few blocks south to warn people. Aspeakerblared “Ice Ice Baby” from the sidewalk. Some people shouted advice at the drivers, encouraging them to ask for badge numbers or remain silent.
“Sir, you don’t want to do this,” one woman shouted at law enforcement. “You do not want this role in history. You did this job to protect and serve. Look what they’re doing to you. This is the community.”
Police left the area around 10 p.m.
