Gun control groups are consistent: they don’t want to make it risky for criminals to commit crime with higher arrest or conviction rates or that victims might be able to defend themselves. Here is a statement from Brady Gun Control group President Kris Brown, with an evaluation of it below hand.
“With today’s actions, Trump has further undermined and disenfranchised D.C. residents, and made our nation’s capital a militarized zone. To be clear, this is the same Donald Trump who inspired a mob then impotently stood by while they attacked the U.S. Capitol in the worst outbreak of mass violence in recent District memory on January 6. He does not care about D.C. or the 700,000 people who call it home.
“Trump’s narrative about D.C. is not based in reality or in facts. Violent crime, including crimes involving firearms, has fallen precipitously since 2023 and were at a 30-year low the day the president returned to the Oval Office. That fall is directly attributable to recent policy efforts to reduce violence, including increased investment in community-based violence intervention work being done by local D.C. residents and organizations, ward by ward. This work was supercharged with funding with the passage of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act during the Biden-Harris administration – funding that the Trump-Vance administration is now terminating. Restoring this funding would continue to reduce violent crime more effectively than federalizing law enforcement.
“We cannot allow the president to use armed intimidation and overpolicing to further exploit D.C. residents — who already have no congressional representation — and continue his dangerous march to authoritarianism. We cannot allow the president to suggest that federalized police is an appropriate response to any and all challenges; or that federalized police do not further endanger the public, especially Black and Brown communities who live and work in or visit D.C. We know what strategies and policies reduce gun crime, and this is not it. We call on every public official in the District and around the country to condemn Trump’s moves and make clear that self-determination is a bedrock of American government from the smallest town council to the entire nation.
Is violent crime down in DC? Yes, but is it still very high relative to the rest of the country? Obviously also yes, both much higher than any other state or compared to the murder rate in 20 most populous cities. There are also probably lots of problems with the D.C. crime as there have been allegations from the police union that there has been pressure put on police to downgrade crimes from felonies to misdemeanors.
So let’s say the crime rate has fallen. Is it at an acceptable level? If not, why not increase arrest and conviction rates to reduce crime? That are at most 450 patrol officers on duty at any point in time for a population of about 720,000. Trump added over 800 more law enforcement agents on duty the first night. The intervention resulted in 66 arrests during the first two nights. Why do gun control advocates think that we should be upset about doing things that increase arrest and prosecution rates?
So here is the test: will increasing deportation of illegal aliens and increased law enforcement lower crime or will ending the funding for the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act increase crime? Does any one want to take that bet?
