FAKE EMERGENCIESTrump Isn’t Sending Troops to Cities with Highest Crime Rates, Data Shows
President Donald Trump has argued that he needs to deploy National Guard troops to support overwhelmed local law enforcement in cities he claims are “overrun” by crime. But an analysis of federal crime data shows that Trump’s deployments and proposed deployments have not focused on the nation’s most violent cities. Of the 10 cities with the highest violent-crime-rates, Trump has sent National Guard troops to just one: Memphis, Tennessee. Instead, the administration has focused on larger, Democratic-run cities in Democratic-led states where violent crime rates are lower than in many other major cities.
President Donald Trump has argued that he needs to deploy National Guard troops across state lines to protect federal personnel and property or to support overwhelmed local law enforcement in cities he claims are “overrun” by crime.
But a Stateline analysis of U.S. Census Bureau and federal crime data shows that Trump’s deployments and proposals have not focused on the nation’s most violent cities. Of the 10 cities population 250,000 or more with the highest violent crime rates, Trump has sent National Guard troops to just one: Memphis, Tennessee.
He has proposed action in just three other top-10 cities: Oakland, California; Baltimore; and St. Louis. All, along with Memphis, are Democratic-led cities.
Several other cities with high violent crime rates — including Milwaukee; Albuquerque, New Mexico; and Minneapolis — also are led by Democrats but have not been targeted. Two other Democratic-led cities with high violent crime rates, Cleveland and Kansas City, Missouri, are in states with Republican governors and likewise haven’t been targeted.
Instead, the administration has directed more attention toward larger, Democratic-run cities in Democratic-led states such as Chicago, Los Angeles and Portland, Oregon, along with Washington, D.C., where violent crime rates are lower than in many other major cities.
In recent months, Trump has pledged strong federal intervention in several cities if, he claims, local officials fail to restore order.
Critics, including Democratic governors and mayors, have challenged his rationale in court, arguing that deployments exceed the president’s authority and undermine local control.
Federal courts have issued orders halting troop deployments in several cities while legal challenges proceed. Most recently, deployments were blocked in Chicago and Portland. The Trump administration is appealing those rulings.
Trump also has suggested deploying troops to New York City and San Francisco.
Stateline’s data analysis shows violent crime has fallen sharply across the United States, including significant drops in some cities that Trump is threatening with military action.
Some crime experts question whether a heightened law enforcement or military presence in major cities will have a lasting impact on crime.
“In the long term, this can’t really be good for public safety,” said Nancy La Vigne, a criminal justice researcher and dean of the School of Criminal Justice at Rutgers University. La Vigne added that crime may decline in the cities where the Guard is deployed, but that it will likely be an “artificial suppression of crime” because potential victims may avoid downtown areas — an effect that could fade over time.
