President Donald Trump announced on Monday that his administration is formally declaring a Public Safety Emergency in Washington, D.C., citing what he described as a severe decline in safety and cleanliness in the nation’s capital.

“This is a tragic emergency,” Trump said. “I don’t like being up here talking about how unsafe and how dirty and disgusting this once beautiful Capital was.”

As part of the declaration, Trump said federal law enforcement will launch “massive enforcement operations” aimed at dismantling gang activity, disrupting drug trafficking, and targeting organized criminal networks. “We’re going to get them the hell off the street,” the president emphasized.

The move comes alongside other recent federal interventions in D.C., including the deployment of 500 federal agents to assist in tackling violent crime, and Trump’s announcement that he would invoke the D.C. Home Rule Act to place the Metropolitan Police Department under direct federal control.