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- By Neely Bardwell
Native Vote 2024. CHICAGO — While Democrats were gathering in Chicago for the 2024 Democratic National Convention, former President Donald Trump made a stop at the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office in Howell, Mich. on Tuesday, August 20, to talk about crime and safety and counter statements made about him at the DNC.
“We’re here today to talk about how we are going to stop the Kamala crime wave that is going on at levels that nobody’s ever seen before,” he told the group of law enforcement officials, many of whom stood behind him in uniform. “She is, as you know, the most radical left person ever even thought of for a high office.”
During the event, Trump highlighted the rise in violent crime under Kamala Harris: "She has presided over a 43% increase in violent crime ... including a 58% increase in rape, 89% increase in aggravated assault, and a 56% increase in robbery."
Native News Online reached out to the Trump campaign to ask where they received these figures. There has been no response at time of publication.
These numbers Trump cited contradict the most recent figures from the Federal Bureau of Investigation that show murder decreased 26.4%, rape decreased 25.7%, aggravated assault fell 12.5% and robbery decreased 17.8% in the first quarter of 2024 compared with a year earlier. A new report from the Major Cities Chiefs Association shows the majority of U.S. cities whose law enforcement agencies provided preliminary data had lower violent crime figures between January through June this year compared to the same time period in 2023.
Trump went on to discuss immigration, claiming Harris “allowed millions of people…open border…to flow into our country…totally unchecked." Arrests for illegal crossings at the southern border reached an all-time high in December but have been declining in 2024, falling to a three-year low in June, according to Customs and Border Protection. This is the lowest level since the Biden-Harris administration took office. In July, they fell again to their lowest level since 2020 after President Joe Biden issued an executive order President Biden in June sharply restricting asylum.
Border Patrol reported 56,408 encounters between ports of entry along the U.S.-Mexico border in July, the lowest monthly total since September 2020. It also represents a 32% drop from the month prior.
On Friday, August 23, Trump plans to deliver remarks in Las Vegas, Nevada at 12 noon - PDT.
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