After years of rising violent crime in America’s major cities, many Democrat-run urban centers are seeing a decline in homicides, according to a recent report by Axios. This trend, though still developing, marks a sharp contrast to the chaos and lawlessness that plagued these cities under President Joe Biden’s leadership.
For years, President Donald Trump has campaigned on a strong law-and-order platform, vowing to tackle rising crime and make America safe again. He often pointed to the devastating effects of crime in Democrat-controlled cities as evidence of the failure of liberal policies. Trump has also criticized the Biden administration’s handling of illegal immigration, claiming that the influx of unvetted migrants across the southern border has further endangered American communities.
Data from the Major Cities Chiefs Association (MCCA) reveals a significant drop in homicides across several American cities. For example, some cities have seen homicide rates decrease by more than 40% in the first nine months of 2024. This marks a stark turnaround from the violent crime spikes of the previous administration, which were fueled in part by defunding the police and soft-on-crime policies that became prevalent in the wake of the 2020 riots.
Cities like Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Montgomery County, Maryland—which were once epicenters of violent crime—are now showing signs of recovery. Axios reports that these areas have experienced homicide reductions as high as 40%. Other cities, such as Cleveland, El Paso, New Orleans, and Washington, D.C., are also seeing declines of around 30%.
Trump has continually highlighted the dangerous consequences of Biden’s open-border policies, often pointing to cities like Aurora, Colorado, where migrant gang activity has spiked. Aurora, however, has seen a modest decrease in homicides, down 10% from the highs of the Biden era.
Despite these positive signs, critics argue that the official data may be incomplete or politicized, especially as we approach the presidential election. Trump has been vocal about the manipulation of crime statistics and has warned that the left will use selective data to paint a misleading picture of safety in urban America. His message remains clear: only through tough-on-crime policies and secure borders can America restore peace and safety to its cities.