Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) complained Tuesday that he's living in his office in Congress because he's too afraid of Washington, D.C. to step outside.
The three-term lawmaker confessed on CNN that he's scared of the nation's capital, but host John Berman listed off some of the most dangerous cities in the U.S. that are far worse than D.C.
Among those with higher violent crime rates are Nashville and Memphis — both in his state. Memphis is widely considered America's most dangerous city.
Berman asked if Burchett — whose district doesn't actually include Memphis — would like to see the National Guard deployed elsewhere.
"I wouldn't," said Burchett, calling Washington the "exception to the rule."
"When you come off the interstate and into Washington, D.C., I hadn't been there probably since I was a young man, and I was just shocked at the-the filth, the people going to the bathroom on the streets, the needles, the crime. And the people that are the victims are the people that live there," claimed Burchett.
He went on to call the city's leadership "out of touch." He also confessed that he doesn't go out in the city — and he never will due to fear.
"I like the mayor. She's a nice lady. I just think it's way past — that you don't want to go out on the streets at night in Washington, D.C. That's one of — I come from a family of public educators. That's one of the reasons I live in my office at night. But the other reason is it's too dadgum dangerous, brother. It is dangerous. Everybody knows it. And the people are being victimized," said Burchett.
Berman hammered Burchett about sending in the guard to more dangerous cities, and the Republican maintained he would not support that.
President Donald Trump called in federal officers and the National Guard, claiming Washington needed added security after a DOGE worker was beaten in an altercation with teenagers. While the city has suffered from high crime in the past, 2025 is already showing a lower-than-normal murder rate, according to a CNN fact-check of Trump.
Longtime Washingtonian and legal analyst Bradly P. Moss responded to Burchett on Bluesky with allegations that "he is scared of the brown and Black people everywhere."
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