A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
Two West Virginia National Guard members are in critical condition after they were shot near the White House in Washington, D.C., Wednesday afternoon. The city's mayor described the attack as targeted. The suspected gunman, who was also shot, is in custody. And the attack comes as President Trump has deployed the National Guard to several cities around the country, a pattern that has been controversial and challenged in the courts. For more, we're joined by NPR's Kat Lonsdorf. Kat tell us about what happened with the shooting.
KAT LONSDORF, BYLINE: Yeah, the shooting occurred about 2:15 p.m. yesterday. At a press conference, the D.C. Metropolitan Police said that the gunman came around a corner and opened fire at the guard members while they were on patrol. Nearby guard members quickly intervened and subdued the shooter. Police say it's unclear at this time who shot the shooter. The two injured guard members, who, like you said, were from West Virginia, were both rushed to hospitals. Earlier yesterday, West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey had said the guard members were killed but walked that back less than an hour later. Authorities have since said that the two are in critical condition.
MARTÍNEZ: And it sounds like the president is talking about the suspected shooter.
LONSDORF: Yeah, in a video statement yesterday, President Trump said the shooter was someone who came to the U.S. from Afghanistan. The Department of Homeland Security later identified the shooter as Rahmanullah Lakanwal and said he came to the U.S. as part of a Biden administration program called Operation Allies Welcome. That allowed thousands of Afghans to enter the country after the Taliban retook power of Afghanistan back in 2021.
Those people came in on two-year grants of parole, then later had to apply for other ways to stay in the country permanently, like asylum, and go through rigorous screening. NPR has not yet independently verified when or why Lakanwal entered the country. And a motive for the shooting is not yet known. In that video last night, Trump called the attack an act of terror.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: We must now reexamine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan under Biden.
LONSDORF: He also repeated anti-immigrant rhetoric. The Trump administration then announced that it had stopped processing immigration applications for Afghan nationals. And, A, this will likely affect a number of Afghans who worked with the U.S. government or NATO forces during the 20-year war in Afghanistan and have largely been left in limbo after the Trump administration curbed immigration.
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah. Now, the National Guard. Back to them for a second because they've been in D.C. for a few months now.
LONSDORF: Yeah.
MARTÍNEZ: Why were they sent here in the first place?
LONSDORF: Yeah, there have been more than 2,000 National Guard troops in D.C. from several states, including West Virginia, since August when Trump ordered the deployment over concerns about the city's crime rate. This has been part of a pattern of Trump deploying the National Guard to Democratic-led cities around the country, often against the wishes of local governors and authorities. And D.C. is unique. Unlike the 50 states, the president has the authority to deploy the National Guard to D.C. I live in D.C., and in the past few months, I see members of the National Guard pretty much every day. They're out patrolling the streets in groups, and they've been helping with beautification efforts.
But these deployments have been very controversial. In places like Portland, Oregon, or Chicago, federal judges almost immediately intervened and blocked them. Those are still tied up in legal battles. And in D.C., a federal judge just last week ruled that the use of troops in the city was unlawful and ordered an end to the deployment. That has yet to take effect to give the administration time to appeal. Meanwhile, after yesterday's attack, Trump doubled down, saying he was ordering an additional 500 troops to the city.
MARTÍNEZ: That's NPR's Kat Lonsdorf. Kat, thank you very much.
LONSDORF: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
