Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a directive issued Thursday evening that DEA boss Terry Cole will assume “powers and duties vested in the District of Columbia Chief of Police.” The Metropolitan Police Department “must receive approval from Commissioner Cole” before issuing any orders,

Washington, D.C.’s attorney general calls administration’s actions ‘gravest threat’ to district’s self-governance

Attorney General Pam Bondi tapped the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) chief Thursday to serve as Washington’s “emergency police commissioner,” a move to wrest power from the District’s current police chief amid the Trump administration’s law enforcement takeover.

D.C. District judge Ana Reyes has scheduled an emergency hearing for 2 p.m. Friday on D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb's request for a restraining order against U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi's directive assuming control over the Metropolitan Police Department.

The attorney general’s comments came as she issued a new directive voiding commands issued – as recently as earlier Thursday –  by DC Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith.

The meeting came after Trump on Monday announced plans to use a 1973 D.C. Home Rule Act provision to send National Guard troops to D.C. and temporarily federalize the city.