President Donald Trump said Friday that Chicago will be the next city that his administration targets for a federal crackdown on crime.
“We’ll straighten that one out, probably next, that will be our next one after this,” Trump said from the Oval Office. “I think Chicago will be our next and then we’ll help with New York.”
The president has credited his federal takeover of Washington, DC’s, police force with driving down crime in the city — touting a weeklong stretch without any murders as a “miracle” despite the fact that such weeks have occurred in DC multiple times so far this year.
Trump also dismissed polling showing that most city residents disapprove of the deployment of federal troops, calling them “fake news” and claiming that residents of Chicago and cities are clamoring for a similar law enforcement crackdown where they live.
“They’re wearing red hats, African American ladies, beautiful ladies, are saying, ‘Please, President Trump, come to Chicago,’” Trump said.
It was not immediately clear how a federal crackdown in Chicago would work and how closely it would resemble what has happened in DC. Washington, DC, which is not a part of any state, has restrictions on its ability to govern its own affairs, and the president has the ability to effectively federalize its police force.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
