You know that President Trump has worked hard to lower crime in the United States, and it’s working. That is terrifying radical progressives like Paul Krugman, who applauded as the Biden administration and Soros-backed politicians across America coddled violent criminals as though they were the victims. Krugman took to his Substack to attempt to turn the issue back on Trump, criticized the president for not mentioning falling crime numbers enough, and then offered a deranged list of reasons why Trump wouldn’t celebrate falling crime. Krugman wrote:
The answer is threefold. First, Trump (along with much of his party) hates American cities, and isn’t open to hearing anything good about them. Second, he (again along with much of his party) has an image of what life is like in our cities that is 40 years out of date. Finally — and again in accord with his party — he wants to punish people, and acknowledging good behavior would get in the way.
This list smacks of a delirious, fevered rage on the left. To the radicals like Krugman, this list is more likely to be true than the idea that putting criminals in jail prevents them from committing more crimes. Occam’s Razor suggests Krugman and his fellow travelers are as delirious as they sound. On the pages of Real Clear Politics, John Lott drives the point home with facts, writing in response to Krugman’s rantings:
Krugman writes that murders are “approaching lows not seen since the 1960s in a number of big cities.” The national numbers tell an even more remarkable story. Since national recordkeeping began in 1900, the previous record-low murder rate was approximately 4.5 per 100,000 people. The rate stood at about 5.0 per 100,000 in 2024, but fell to just under 4.0 in 2025, and, if the Council on Criminal Justice’s reported 18% decline in murders across the nation’s 30 largest cities during the first half of 2026 reflects the national trend, the U.S. murder rate will fall to roughly 3.25 per 100,000 this year – the lowest rate ever recorded.
Reducing crime is not complicated. Governments reduce crime by increasing the certainty of arrest and conviction, imposing meaningful prison sentences, and allowing law-abiding citizens to defend themselves. Recent developments have moved in all three directions.
The FBI dramatically increased enforcement in 2025. FBI arrests rose 184% over 2024 levels, while total FBI arrests – including many joint operations with state and local agencies – increased 197%.
Voters also replaced several George Soros-backed prosecutors in jurisdictions such as Los Angeles and San Francisco with district attorneys who prosecute criminals more aggressively and seek tougher sentences. Across the country, President Trump’s U.S. attorneys have likewise pursued violent offenders far more aggressively than their predecessors. In Washington, D.C., for example, the Biden administration’s U.S. attorney declined to prosecute 67% of those arrested. Under U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, that figure has fallen to just 4%.
The decline in crime has also coincided with increased immigration enforcement. During the Trump administration, approximately 70% of deported illegal immigrants had either criminal convictions or pending criminal charges. Even those without criminal records understand that contact with law enforcement can lead to deportation, giving them a stronger incentive to avoid criminal activity.
It isn’t a coincidence that felony violent crime rates soared by a record 59% during the Biden administration; we had a record influx of illegals coming into the country, and violent crime is plummeting now that the border is closed and illegals are being deported. During the Biden administration, at least 12.8 million illegal aliens either surrendered at the border, were apprehended after crossing illegally, or became known gotaways, but no one knows how many more millions of additional illegals entered without being detected.
Action Line: Lott continues, noting that Americans are also carrying concealed firearms more often. You are your own first responder. Carrying a firearm and training with it can prepare you to defend yourself. Enjoy America’s safer streets, and keep you and your family safe. Get your gun and your training, now. Click here to subscribe to my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter.
