President Trump said on Friday that he planned to target Chicago and New York for his next federal crackdown on crime, suggesting he was willing to use active-duty troops on city streets.
At an event in the Oval Office, Mr. Trump credited his federal takeover of Washington’s police force and the deployment of the National Guard for cleaning up the city. He has used inaccurate figures to portray D.C. as lawless, and crime had been falling before the takeover.
“We haven’t had to bring in the regular military, which we’re willing to do if we have to,” Mr. Trump said. “After we do this, we’ll go to another location, and we’ll make it safe.”
Mr. Trump then called Chicago “a mess” and said that “we’ll straighten that one out.”
“Probably next, that will be our next one after this, and it won’t even be tough,” he said, adding, “I think Chicago will be our next and then we’ll help with New York.”
Later, a reporter asked Mr. Trump if he had taken any concrete steps toward bringing a federal crackdown to Chicago. The president said he had not.
“When we’re ready, we’ll go in and we’ll straighten out Chicago, just like we did D.C.,” he said.
Mr. Trump’s comments suggest he will use the crackdown on Washington as a template for other cities around the country. But he would have limited ability to deploy the show of force in the same way he did in D.C.
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The post Trump Says Chicago and New York Are Next for Federal Crackdown on Crime appeared first on New York Times.
