D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith fields questions from the media after Trump federalized the D.C. police department. (Fox News)
The exchange came amid Bowser's brief press conference Tuesday morning following her meeting with Attorney General Pam Bondi.
"Our organizational chart, how we do business, how we fund the police, none of that has changed," Bowser explained, adding that Bondi is working as Trump's "proxy" under the federalization order and that the pair are in close communication.
"We have more police, and we want to make sure we use them," she added.
President Donald Trump speaks to the press about deploying federal law enforcement agents in Washington to bolster the local police presence, as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth looks on, in the Press Briefing Room at the White House, in Washington D.C., Aug. 11, 2025. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)
"WTF! The DC Police Chief doesn’t even know what Chain of Command means," another conservative X account posted in response.
"Smith previously served as the Police Department's "Chief Equity Officer,'" the Trump War Room account posted to X.
"MIND BLOWING: D.C. police chief reveals she DOES NOT KNOW what chain of command is. Folks, this is the Washington, D.C. POLICE Chief," another critic posted.
"NEW: Washington DC Police Chief Pamela A. Smith doesn't know what the ‘chain of command’ means. … Yikes," Trending Politics co-owner Collin Rugg posted.
Fox Digital reached out to the Metropolitan Police Department and Bowser's office for comment on the exchange and subsequent backlash, but did not immediately receive replies.
TRUMP ACTIVATES NATIONAL GUARD TROOPS TO ADDRESS ‘TOTALLY OUT OF CONTROL’ CRIME IN WASHINGTON
Trump federalized the D.C. police department following a spate of high-profile attacks and killings in the city in recent weeks, including the fatal shooting of a congressional intern in June, the fatal shooting of a pair of Israeli embassy staffers in May, and a brutal attack on a former Department of Government Efficiency staffer earlier in August.
Hundreds of National Guard troops will flood the city following President Donald Trump federalizing the D.C. police department Aug. 11, 2025. (Visions of America/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
"Our capital city has been overtaken by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals, roving mobs of wild youth, drugged-out maniacs and homeless people," he said. "And we're not going to let it happen anymore. We're not going to take it."
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Trump declared it was "Liberation Day in D.C.," adding, "We're going to take our capital back."
"We're taking it back under the authority vested in me as the president of the United States. I'm officially invoking section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act. You know what that is. And placing the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department under direct federal control. … In addition, I'm deploying the National Guard to help reestablish law, order and public safety in Washington, D.C. And they're going to be allowed to do their job properly," he said Monday.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/dc-police-chief-ripped-mind-blowing-response-basic-policing-question-what-does-mean