DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement:

“Here’s the simple truth: The murder rate skyrocketed under Donald Trump and crime rates have fallen under President Biden. Trump tried to defund law enforcement programs every year he was in office and continues to side with January 6 insurrectionists over law enforcement who defended the Capitol. Trump and MAGA Republicans are now running on a dangerous agenda that would make our communities less safe and roll back the progress President Biden has made to bring down crime rates – but voters won’t let Trump put our communities at risk.”

FACT: Under Donald Trump, the murder rate SKYROCKETED while crime rates have decreased under President Biden.

NBC News: “Crime in almost every category went down across U.S. in 2023, FBI reports”

Associated Press: “FBI: 2020 homicides up nearly 30%, largest 1-year jump ever”

Philadelphia Inquirer: “The Council on Criminal Justice, a D.C.-based research group, found that homicides in 21 American cities were up 32% between March and October compared with 2019. And some analysts believe 2020 could record the largest-ever single-year increase in murders in the United States.”

Trump has made a resounding call to defund federal law enforcement – he proposed cuts to law enforcement programs in his federal budget every single year he was in office.

Sahil Kapur, NBC News: “Donald Trump pressures Republicans to defund the (federal) police.”

MSNBC: “Trump joins other Republicans in pushing to ‘defund the FBI’”

Jonathan Allen, NBC News: “When Trump was president, he proposed slashing federal funding for local police forces.”

Wall Street Journal: “The [Trump] administration’s 2021 budget, like all its previous budgets, recommended eliminating the Community Relations Services and Community Oriented Policing Services and placing their functions under other parts of the department to ‘improve efficiency.’”

Vox: “Donald Trump is defunding the police”

“President Trump has repeatedly proposed cuts in federal funding for police, criticized landmark legislation that boosted financial support for police departments, and is currently involved in blocking legislation that would greatly reduce pressure on local governments to cut police funding. In layman’s terms, he’s been trying to defund the police.”

Trump has continued to side with violent January 6 rioters over law enforcement – he refused to call for prosecution of January 6 rioters and has instead promised to pardon many of them. 

Business Insider: “Then-President Donald Trump didn’t want to specifically call for the Justice Department to prosecute January 6 rioters or forcefully condemn those who stormed the Capitol as unrepresentative of the MAGA movement.”

Washington Post: “No, Trump did not order 10,000 troops to secure the Capitol on Jan. 6”

The Hill: “Trump describes imprisoned Jan. 6 rioters as ‘hostages’”

Washington Post: “Trump vows pardons, government apology to Capitol rioters if elected”

NBC News: “Former President Donald Trump promised Wednesday night that if he is elected he will pardon a ‘large portion’ of the people convicted of federal offenses for their participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.”

​​Washington Post: ​​“Former president Donald Trump on Thursday praised and embraced a woman convicted of defying police orders on the U.S. Capitol grounds on Jan. 6, 2021. … Trump has steadily escalated his advocacy for people charged in the Capitol riot, including by pledging to pardon them if he returns to the White House, praising them as patriots, participating in a recording with Jan. 6 prisoners singing the national anthem, and playing it at his first rally of the 2024 campaign last month.”

Trump: “January 6, it was the largest crowd I’ve ever spoken to. And they were there proud, they were there with love in their heart. That was an unbelievable — and it was a beautiful day.”

NBC News: “Trump spoke at a fundraiser for Jan. 6 defendants”

President Biden signed the first major federal gun safety legislation in decades, but Trump and MAGA Republicans continue to cozy up to the gun lobby and oppose commonsense reforms.

NPR: “President Biden on Saturday signed into law the first major gun safety legislation passed by Congress in nearly 30 years.”

New York Times: “As the most prominent current and potential Republican presidential candidates spoke before the annual gathering of the National Rifle Association, most virulently rejected the idea that more gun restrictions could curb bloodshed, even as two American cities are still mourning the latest massacres in the nation’s gun violence epidemic.”

Washington Post: “Republicans were unanimous in their rejection of an assault weapons ban, and did not express enthusiasm for other controls either.”

Trump: “There’s no bigger fan of the NRA [than me].”

NBC News: “Trump says mass shootings are not ‘a gun problem’ as 2024 GOP hopefuls pledge loyalty to the NRA”

President Biden and Democrats’ American Rescue Plan included hundreds of billions of dollars for state and local governments that could be used to boost local law enforcement. Every Republican in Congress voted against it. 

ABC News: “President Joe Biden will announce Friday that $10 billion from the American Rescue Plan has been committed to police departments and public safety across the U.S. … These funds show what has been reported from cities through the end of 2021. The COVID-19 relief law included $350 billion for state and local governments to reduce violence.”