'Federalise this city...': DOGE staff's assault in Washington DC brings Trump, Musk on same page - Here's what happened

A former DOGE employee was allegedly mugged and beaten in Washington, DC, prompting a sharp response from United States President Donald Trump and former chief of the cost-slashing department, Elon Musk. While Trump threatened to federalise Washington DC, the Tesla boss backed him, burying his differences with the US president that had stemmed due to their contrasting views on the big and beautiful tax bill. The federalism in Washington DC means a specific arrangement where the District of Columbia, a federal district, is governed by the US federal government, rather than being a state with its own state-level government.

What was the incident?

Former DOGE worker, Edward Coristine, aka Big Balls, was allegedly attacked in Washington, DC, earlier this week. FOX 5 DC reported that the attack took place at Swann Street and 14th Street in Northwest DC. Musk revealed that the DOGE worker attempted to stop a gang of about a dozen young men who tried to assault a woman in her car at night in DC. After the DOGE worker ran to defend the woman, he was severely beaten to the point of concussion by the gang members. The SpaceX CEO then revealed that the worker managed to save the woman even after he was severaly injured. Trump in his post stated that gang members are "randomly attacking, mugging, maiming, and shooting innocent citizens." While both Trump and Musk did not reveal the identity of the DOGE worker who was assaulted, Rapid Response 47 posted a photo on social media, indicating he was the famous ‘Big Balls’, whose real name is Edward Coristine.

What did Trump and Musk say?

In a lengthy post on Truth Social, Trump condemned the attack on the DOGE worker and said that law must be changed to prosecute the minors. He proposed that the starting age to prosecute minors as adults should start at the age of 14. He warned that if 'DC doesn't get its act together', then he would have to exert his powers and fedralise the city. "The Law in D.C. must be changed to prosecute these “minors” as adults, and lock them up for a long time, starting at age 14. The most recent victim was beaten mercilessly by local thugs. Washington, D.C., must be safe, clean, and beautiful for all Americans and, importantly, for the World to see. If D.C. doesn’t get its act together and quickly, we will have no choice but to take Federal control of the City, and run this City how it should be run, and put criminals on notice that they’re not going to get away with it anymore," Trump said.

Calling the man who was assaulted 'an incredible young man', Trump said that he wouldn't have to go through the horrors of violent crime if Washington D.C. were federalised. He also added, “Crime in Washington, D.C., is totally out of control. Local “youths” and gang members, some only 14, 15, and 16-years-old, are randomly attacking, mugging, maiming, and shooting innocent Citizens, at the same time knowing that they will be almost immediately released.”

Sharing Elon Musk's post on X, the Tesla CEO said that it time to fedralise DC. Notably, Musk and Trump were on the same page after a long time since their distance grew over stance on the big beautiful bill. Former buddies were seen exchanging harsh words against each other, with Trump threatening to deport Musk and the latter stating that the US president's name was in the Epstein Files. Since his exit from the White House, Musk has demanded the release of the controversial Epstein Files.