General
US President Donald Trump has said that he is aiming to crack down on crime in several American cities, and he has his eyes on Chicago in Illinois, a Democrat-led city, next. Calling the work done by the National Guard in Washington, DC, “incredible,” Trump said that it would work as a model in making other cities and the country “very safe.”
Trump had deployed the National Guard in the nation’s capital, surged federal law enforcement, and taken control of the local police force. While speaking at a news conference in the Oval Office on Friday (August 22, 2025), Trump said, “The National Guard has done such an incredible job working with the police,” as quoted by ABC News. “And after we do this, we’ll go to another location, and we’ll make it safe also. We’re going to make our country very safe. We’re going to make our cities very, very safe,” he added.
The US President hinted that Chicago would be the next city he would “make safe.” While reiterating his claims that crime in the city is out of control, Trump criticized the current Democratic leadership, saying that it isn’t doing enough to address the problem. Trump, however, did not provide any concrete evidence to back his claims. The president and Vice President JD Vance claimed that people in Chicago were “screaming” for help.
“African American ladies, beautiful ladies, are saying, ‘Please, President Trump, come to Chicago, please,'” Trump claimed, ABC News reported. He added that he “did great with the Black vote.”
General Trump targets crime, homelessness, and illegal immigration in Chicago
The US President on Friday (August 22, 2025) said Chicago will likely be the next target of his efforts to crack down on crime, homelessness, and illegal immigration. He indicated that the Midwestern city could receive similar treatment to what he’s done in Washington, D.C., where he’s deployed 2,000 troops on the streets. “I think Chicago will be our next,” Trump told reporters at the White House, later adding, “And then we’ll help with New York.”
The comments came as the Pentagon on Friday began ordering troops in Washington to carry firearms, though there have been no overt indications they have faced threats that would require them to carry weapons.
Trump has repeatedly described some of the nation’s largest cities—run by Democrats, with Black mayors and majority-minority populations—as dangerous and filthy. He singled out Chicago on Friday, calling it a “mess” and saying residents there are “screaming for us to come” despite significant decreases in crimes of violence.
What do the statistics say about crime in Chicago?
As far as the crime statistics from Chicago’s Police Department are concerned, they suggest that overall crime in the city is down 13% year to date compared to the same period in 2024, with 59,206 reported crime instances compared to 68,165 the year before. Murders and robberies year-to-date are down 31% and 33%, respectively, compared to the same period in 2024, the police records reveal.
In comparison to the situation in 2021, crime is up 40%, when there were 42,250 reported incidents year-to-date. The cases of murders and robberies, however, witnessed a dip of 50% and 11%, respectively, in those four years, according to the Chicago PD data.
‘When we are ready, we’ll go ahead’: Trump
US President Trump has stated that the administration has not taken any concrete steps to increase police presence in Chicago. He dubbed Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson as “grossly incompetent” and said, “When we’re ready, we’ll go ahead,” as quoted by ABC News.
“We’ll go ahead and we’ll straighten out Chicago, just like we did D.C. Chicago’s very dangerous. Great place. I built great stuff there. I have the most beautiful building in Chicago, I think, but I hate to see what’s happened to Chicago. Chicago is our greatest city, actually,” he further said.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson responds to Trump’s claims
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said his office has not received formal communication from the Trump administration about military or federal law enforcement deployments in Chicago but said, “We have grave concerns about the impact of any unlawful deployment of National Guard troops,” according to news agency AP.
Johnson called Trump’s approach “uncoordinated, uncalled for, and unsound,” arguing it “has the potential to inflame tensions between residents and law enforcement.” It is unclear how Trump would pursue an effort in Chicago that is similar to his approach to D.C., where home rule laws give the federal government greater authority.