Pinto asks five new Democratic governors to pull their troops from D.C. streets
Two days after midterm wins flipped Georgia, Iowa, Nevada, Ohio, and Texas blue, D.C.'s public safety chair held a Council hearing on the National Guard, and the Pentagon announced it wants even more troops here.
In brief
Why this matters to you right now
More than 2,300 National Guard troops have been patrolling D.C. streets since President Trump declared a crime emergency in August 2025. For more than a year, residents near schools like Wheatley Education Campus in Eckington have watched armed soldiers use a neighborhood parking lot as a staging area. Parents have complained. Principals have complained. And until Tuesday's midterm results, D.C.'s elected officials had almost no political leverage to do anything about it.
That changed fast.
On Thursday, November 5, Ward 2 Councilmember Brooke Pinto convened a long-planned public hearing on federal law enforcement and military activity in the city. The hearing had been scheduled for weeks. What nobody fully anticipated was the timing: it landed 48 hours after midterm elections swept Democratic candidates into five new governor's offices across the country, in states that happen to have hundreds of soldiers currently posted on D.C. corners.
The number that drove the hearing: 628
Pinto said there are about 628 National Guard members currently deployed in D.C. from five states that elected Democratic governors this week: Georgia, Iowa, Nevada, Ohio, and Texas. Those incoming governors are Keisha Lance Bottoms, Rob Sand, Aaron Ford, Amy Acton, and Gina Hinojosa, respectively.
The local lawmaker said those five states account for 628 active National Guard troops in the District. There are over 3,000 troops in Washington as of this week, about 2,000 troops below the summer high during the nation's 250th anniversary.
Pinto chairs the Council's Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety. She did not just raise the issue in the hearing room. She said, "We are calling on them to withdraw their troops immediately, and it's something they can do their first day in office." She announced plans to send formal letters to each of the five governors-elect.
At the same hearing, Pinto said that congressional leaders have been "unsympathetic to what we've been dealing with and, in some cases, directly hostile." Then came the pivot. "After Tuesday night, the tide is turning," she said. "I am very hopeful that we now have the partners at the state and congressional level to push back and demand that this unnecessary, harmful and unlawful military presence be removed from the District."
In a post on X, Pinto wrote: "Having armed National Guard troops and increased federal law enforcement in DC continues to cause fear and intimidation in our communities, and it must stop."
The Pentagon moved in the opposite direction the same morning
The hearing's timing collided with a counterpunch from Washington's other side of Pennsylvania Avenue. Pinto, who chairs the Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety, held the hearing Thursday examining federal operations in the city and their impact on residents. "Disturbingly today, Secretary Hegseth announced that they want to ramp up their presence of the National Guard in the city," Pinto said.
An October 29 Pentagon memo would expand the Guard's ability to support law enforcement operations throughout the District. So while Pinto was asking five governors to send troops home, the Defense Department was formalizing plans to deepen the military footprint here. The push comes as a federal appeals court weighs whether President Trump has the legal authority to deploy out-of-state Guard units on D.C. streets.
That court fight has dragged on for months. New tensions are emerging over the National Guard in D.C., but the end of the deployment is nowhere in sight. A federal appeals court again heard arguments in D.C.'s effort to eject the National Guard, but it's unclear when a ruling may come. And even then, the fight could be headed to the Supreme Court.
The deployment itself is currently authorized through January 2029. That is more than two years away.
Who backed Pinto at the hearing
Pinto, who discussed sending a letter to the incoming governors, was supported in her call by council member Elissa Silverman (D-At Large) and former council member Robert C. White, who just won election Tuesday as the District's new congressional delegate and attended the hearing in one of his final public appearances as a Council voice before transitioning to the Hill.
The legal question underneath Pinto's request is real. The Guardsmen on duty in the District are being paid by the federal government, but remain under the control of their respective state's governors. It's unclear if the governors can recall troops on a whim, as Pinto's statement at the hearing suggests. Governors have done it before in other contexts, but no sitting governor has yet recalled Guard units from D.C. under Trump's deployment orders.
The incoming governors have not announced whether they intend to withdraw their National Guard personnel.
Months of neighborhood anger behind a single hearing
The hearing Thursday was not an improvised reaction to Tuesday's elections. A petition circulating online raised specific concerns about National Guard troops using the Wheatley Education Campus and Joseph H. Cole Recreation Center parking lot as a staging area in mid-August. Pinto scheduled the public hearing for November 5 to give D.C. residents an opportunity to share their concerns and testimony about the ongoing federal presence in the District.
Pinto says she has repeatedly urged National Guard troops to stay away from school zones. She continues to hear concerns from parents, teachers and students about the presence of troops near D.C. schools.
In September, hundreds of parents recently asked Councilmember Pinto to hold a hearing on the issue within 30 days. Thursday's session was that hearing, more than a month later but arriving at a moment with actual political wind behind it.
What the five new governors would actually need to do
Pinto's request is narrow and specific. It does not require an act of Congress, a court ruling, or the White House's cooperation. During the public hearing, Pinto said election victories by Democratic governors in Georgia, Iowa, Nevada, Ohio, and Texas offer an opportunity to recall out-of-state Guard units. She noted that those five states account for a combined 628 National Guard troops currently stationed in the capital. She said she wants the incoming governors to issue troop withdrawal orders on their first day in office.
Analysis: Whether any governor would do this, knowing it draws a direct confrontation with a sitting president over a deployment he has staked political capital on, is a different question than whether the law permits it. The governors have not signaled their intentions either way.
What D.C. Residents Should Watch
Governor responses: Keisha Lance Bottoms (Georgia), Rob Sand (Iowa), Aaron Ford (Nevada), Amy Acton (Ohio), and Gina Hinojosa (Texas) each take office in January 2027. Watch for any public response to Pinto's formal letters, which she said Thursday she will send.
The appeals court ruling: A decision from the D.C. Circuit on Trump's authority to deploy out-of-state Guard units could land before the new governors are sworn in, potentially making Pinto's diplomatic effort moot, or legally necessary.
The Pentagon expansion order: Secretary Hegseth's announcement Thursday of a planned ramp-up gives the administration a tool to offset any state-level withdrawals by pulling in troops from other states.
Schools and staging areas: Residents near Wheatley Education Campus in Eckington can track whether the November 5 hearing produces any enforceable commitment to keep Guard staging areas away from school grounds, regardless of how the broader deployment fight plays out.
Council follow-through: Pinto said a formal letter is coming. When it goes out, what it asks, and whether any governor responds on record will shape how much practical pressure the Council can actually apply before January.
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CAN I KICK IT? screens New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument, on Aug. 22. (Courtesy SHAOLIN JAZZ)
The live-cinema series CAN I KICK IT? returns to the National Mall this month with what its producers are calling the "Gangsters on the Mall" chapter of their free outdoor summer run. On Saturday, August 22, the SHAOLIN JAZZ production brings the 1991 crime classic New Jack City to the Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument for a night of film, music, and community under the DC summer sky.
What sets the event apart is the sound. As the film plays, DJ 2-Tone Jones builds an original score in real time, reimagining one of the most iconic crime movies of the ’90s through hip-hop, soul, funk, and more. It is less a movie screening than a live performance built around the film.
The details:
Film: New Jack City (1991), with a live soundtrack by DJ 2-Tone Jones
When: Saturday, August 22 — seating opens at 7:30 p.m. (bring lawn chairs and blankets); film begins at 8:30 p.m.
Where: Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument, Independence Ave SW & 15th St NW
A parking note from the organizers: expect road closures and restricted parking east of 14th Street NW due to a separate race event in the District. Roads west of 14th Street NW will be accessible and available for parking.
New Jack City is the second of three screenings in this year’s free CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series, which opened with Black Panther at Skyland Town Center and concludes with Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial on September 5. Produced by the Washington, DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, the series has presented more than 150 live cinematic experiences at venues across the country, from Lincoln Center to SXSW.
"I wanted to be able to tell good stories with substance and remove the ‘ego’ out of the art," said Andrew Huang during a recent interview. Now, he’s building his career at the intersection of discipline, creativity and innovation.
Andrew Huang, founder of New Place Studios. (Courtesy photo)
As a Chinese American, Huang was reared with a deep respect for hard work, consistency and excellence. He describes his childhood as "not so affluent" and later attended college to hone his passion for videography. "In college I tried to do something I loved, which was video, but along the way I knew that I had to find a job. And so I thought, ‘what was the low hanging fruit to get to that stable 9 to 5 job?,’" he stated.
Later in life, Huang found himself working for corporations where his creativity was often limited, eventually leading to burnout. "I worked in a corporation for a long time and there were a lot of missing pieces. I wanted to fill in gaps missing in corporate video production," said Huang.
He later described how his upbringing and a mindset of "survival" led him toward a corporate career. However, his desire for balance and authentic storytelling ultimately pushed him to take the entrepreneurial leap.
"I founded a new place where you can create video and film with ‘substance and style,’" said Huang. His desire for work-life balance and passion for storytelling naturally evolved into a small business based in Virginia. With the launch of New Place Studios, the entrepreneur quickly found himself reconnecting with the values that would become the foundation of everything he creates behind the camera.
Huang said being a business owner has allowed him to first embrace himself. While others may see video as simply capturing moments, he sees it as a way to preserve stories that inspire, connect and leave a lasting imprint.
By combining cinematic visuals with cutting-edge production techniques and a keen understanding of branding, Huang helps organizations and individuals communicate their vision with purpose. He said understanding a client’s "why" serves as the compass for delivering the services they need.
One benefit of working with a small business, he said, is that clients get to see the production process unfold through a micro lens while working with the same faces throughout the entire project. "The work feels personal," said Huang.
Huang does not regret leaving behind the flash-over-substance mentality and corporate hustle culture. That does not mean the Asian American entrepreneur has been without challenges in the industry. "It’s relatively hard to find other Asian American creatives or people who would want to work with me in the DMV," said Huang.
He identifies the industry culture in which everyone is trying to blend in, creatives may fear displaying their Asian identity and some feel pressure to adopt an American corporate persona. He also points to what he describes as a level of gatekeeping within the industry. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2024 statistics, Asian American and Pacific Islander entrepreneurs own more than 3 million businesses and employ 5.2 million people in the United States.
After tapping into organizations such as SCORE, which offers free small business mentorship, New Place Studios has become a trusted creative partner throughout the DMV (Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia). The company produces a range of creative services, including commercials, corporate branding, documentaries, film, 2D animation, motion graphics and photography.
For Huang, entrepreneurship has become more than a departure from corporate life. It has given him the freedom to create with intention, build meaningful connections and tell stories that go beyond the surface.
The 2026 CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
For three Saturdays this summer, some of Washington’s most familiar public spaces will do something they rarely do after dark: fill up with blankets, lawn chairs, and the sound of a movie being scored live, in real time. CAN I KICK IT?, the traveling “live cinema” series produced by the DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, is bringing a free outdoor run to the city — pairing three era-defining films with an original soundtrack performed on the spot by DJ 2-Tone Jones.
The premise is what sets it apart from a normal screening in the park. Rather than simply pressing play, 2-Tone Jones builds a score as the film unfolds, pulling from hip-hop, soul, funk, jazz, rock, electronic music, and sounds from around the world. The result, the organizers say, is less a movie night than a one-time performance — the same film you know, wired to a soundtrack you have never heard and will not hear again. Guest DJs warm up the crowd starting at 7:30 PM before each 8:30 PM screening.
The 2026 outdoor schedule
All three events are free and open to the public.
Saturday, August 8 — Black Panther at Skyland Town Center. A pop-up marketplace and community activities kick off the evening; guest DJs at 7:30 PM, film at 8:30 PM. Marvel’s superhero epic gets a one-night-only live score in Southeast DC.
Saturday, August 22 — New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument. Seating begins at 7:30 PM; the film starts at 8:30 PM. The 1991 crime drama plays out at the foot of one of the country’s most recognizable landmarks.
Saturday, September 5 — Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial. Seating at 7:30 PM; film at 8:30 PM. The series closes with Brian De Palma’s crime saga against the backdrop of the Memorial, scored live from start to finish.
First up: Black Panther at Skyland Town Center on August 8. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
A DC company with a national footprint
SHAOLIN JAZZ describes itself as a Washington-based arts company working at the intersection of music, film, art, and culture, and CAN I KICK IT? is its signature production. According to the organizers, the series has staged more than 150 live cinematic experiences around the country — at performing arts centers, museums, festivals, and cultural institutions including Lincoln Center in New York, SXSW, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Republic Square in Austin, the Tacoma Armory, and The Cary Theater.
“CAN I KICK IT? has always been about creating a shared experience,” said Gerald Watson, co-founder of SHAOLIN JAZZ. “When you combine iconic films with live music in public spaces, something special happens. People aren’t just watching a movie — they’re experiencing it together. That’s what makes these nights so memorable.”
Cinema as a community event
The DC run lands as cities across the country look for new ways to activate public space through arts and culture — and this series is a straightforward pitch for how to do it: take a landmark everyone already knows, add a film everyone has an opinion about, and let a live soundtrack turn the evening into something neighbors experience shoulder to shoulder. Families, film buffs, and music fans are all invited, and admission won’t cost a thing.
The CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series runs August 8, August 22, and September 5. All events are free; check SHAOLIN JAZZ (shaolinjazz.com) for the latest details and any weather updates before heading out.
