Trump suggests the possibility of expanding his crime plan to Chicago and other cities
During a press conference in the Oval Office, Trump described Chicago as "a mess" and sharply criticized the city's mayor, Brandon Johnson, whom he called "grossly incompetent."
Brandon Johnson, mayor of Chicago (Archive)/ Saul Loeb
President Donald Trump signaled Friday his intention to extend the federal crime crackdown recently launched in Washington DC, to other U.S. cities, with Chicago as a likely next target.
During a press conference at the Oval Office, where he announced that the 2026 World Cup draw will be held at the Kennedy Center, Trump described Chicago as "a mess" and sharply criticized the city's mayor, Brandon Johnson, whom he called "substantially incompetent".
President Trump says Chicago is the next target for a crime crackdown after DC:
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) August 22, 2025
"Chicago's a mess. You have an incompetent mayor, grossly incompetent. And we'll straighten that one out probably next... that will be our next one... and it won't even be tough." pic.twitter.com/RGlanxggA1
"After we do this will go to another location, and we'll make it safe, also. We're going to make our country very safe," Trump asserted.
Not just Chicago, also New York
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The president did not limit his comments to Chicago, slipping in New York as another possible destination for his anti-crime campaign as well.
Chicago's response
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson picked up the gauntlet and responded to the Republican's comments, expressing that the possibility of a National Guard deployment would be “uncoordinated, uncalled for, and unsound” according to review Reuters.
Johnson further noted that progress in reducing crime in Chicago is due to local efforts. “There are many things the federal government could do to help us reduce crime and violence in Chicago, but sending in the military is not one of them”, he said.
DC Deployment Facts
In that line, according to the D.C. Police Union crime statistics following the measures implemented by the Trump Administration, major crimes experienced a significant decline.
Through a posting on its X account, the union specified that vehicle theft was down 83%, violent crime was down 22% and common theft was down 46%. In addition, property crimes saw a 6% decrease, while overall crime was down 8%.
“While federal assistance gives us a boost, we must repeal the misguided Comprehensive Policing and Justice Reform Act in order to make these changes permanent”, they added.
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