In yet another desperate attempt to score headlines and troll President Donald Trump, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) last week mocked Republican-led states, suggesting that if Trump were truly serious about fighting crime, he’d send the National Guard to places like Louisiana, where the murder rate far exceeds that of California.
But Newsom’s smug political stunt quickly fell flat when Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called his bluff.
“Absolutely,” Noem responded when asked if a Trump administration would send National Guard troops into Republican-run areas to combat crime. “Every single city is evaluated for what we need to do there to make it safer.”
Here’s the problem for Newsom: even if Trump did send in troops, odds are they’d still end up in Democrat-controlled cities. Not out of political bias, but because that’s where violent crime is actually concentrated.
Yes, some of the cities with the highest murder rates are in red states. But who runs these cities? Not Republicans.
Of the 20 U.S. cities with the highest homicide rates, 12 are located in red states—but just one has a Republican mayor. Even that example, Shreveport, Louisiana, has seen GOP leadership for only 11 of the past 152 years. It’s a similar story across the board:
Birmingham hasn’t had a Republican mayor since 1971.
St. Louis, 1949.
Atlanta, 1879.
New Orleans, 1872.
Let that sink in. These cities aren’t red just because they’re in red states—they’re blue to the core, and have been for generations. The rising crime in these areas isn’t a product of conservative governance—it’s the legacy of Democratic mismanagement.
Take Indianapolis. Before Democrats took the mayor’s office in 2016, the city averaged 120 homicides a year. Under Democrat leadership? That number has surged to an average of 201.
Recommended
Even Dallas, where Mayor Eric Johnson recently switched parties, shows the same pattern. Johnson ran twice as a Democrat and only became a Republican in 2023.
"Our cities desperately need the genuine commitment to law and order and fiscal conservatism that has long been a defining characteristic of the GOP," he said.
He’s right. The problem in America’s cities is local—and the blame lies squarely with the policies and politicians who have abandoned the basics: prosecuting crime, supporting police, and holding criminals accountable.
As the Heritage Foundation noted, “Your public safety as a resident is dramatically impacted by your district attorney, by your police department, and by whether the local politicians support and adequately fund the police and prosecutor’s offices.”
In too many Democrat-run cities, police are understaffed, prosecutors are more interested in social justice than actual justice, and repeat offenders are let loose thanks to soft-on-crime policies and cashless bail. Meanwhile, residents suffer, and politicians like Newsom deflect blame with cheap shots at red states.
Editor’s Note: Thanks to President Trump, illegal immigration into our great country has virtually stopped. Despite the radical left's lies, new legislation wasn't needed to secure our border, just a new president.
Help us continue to report the truth about the president's border policies and mass deportations. Join Townhall VIP and use promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your membership.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member