Donald Trump's recent floating proposal to deploy the National Guard to the blue cities of the crime, such as the blue cities as Chicago and Baltimore has encountered Howls of indignation from usual suspects. For many liberal speakers and Democratic officials, this is simply the last evidence of Trump's “authoritarianism. But such misleading analysis distracts what all parties should focus properly: the well -being of people who really live in such attached jurisdictions of crime.
What is remarkable is not only the specific policy suggestion itself, after all, the Federal Force has been called or sent to help the police at the state level many times, but Trump again makes their political opponents defend the indefensible. It has a singular talent to make the left clutch in tremendously unpopular positions and Take the wrong side of clear problems of 80-20. It is Jiu-Jitsu political at its expression.
Crime in cities like Chicago and Baltimore is not a dream of right -wing fever. It is a persistent and documented crisis that continues to destroy communities and ruins lives. Saw Chicago Almost 600 homicides Only in 2024. In Baltimore, despite a recent touch, violent crime remains exponentially higher than national averages. The sustained democratic leadership, decades in both cities, has failed, again and again, to ensure even a minimum security security level for residents, many of whom are black and working class, two communities democrats intend to defend.
Trump sees that leadership and emptiness of quality of life. And is filling it with a popular message of law and order.
Trump's proposal to deploy the National Guard is not the flight of the fantasy of a possible strong man. It is the functioning of federalism as the founders intended: the federal government must intervene, by Article IV of the ConstitutionWhen local governance decomposes so catastrophically that federals are necessary to “guarantee … a republican form of government.” Even more specifically, the 1807 insurrection law It has been available for a long time as an authorized tool with Congress for presidents to restore order when state disturbances reach truly intolerable levels. Jefferson's presidents to Eisenhower a Bush 41 have invoked him.
Trump's critics prefer not to have a conversation about bloody cities such as Chicago, or the long history of presidents who display the National Guard when local circumstances require it. They prefer to shout “fascism” than to explain why a grandmother on the southern side of Chicago should have to dodge gang bullets on their way to the church. They prefer to sing slogans about “abolishing the police” than to face the hard fact that the communities most devastated by crime constantly cry out More application of the law – No less.
This is where Trump's political instincts shine. It does not try to “win” the crime debate by dividing the difference with the progressives. It does not offer a Milquetoast promise to finance “violence switches” or expand social programs without teeth. He goes right on the subject, knowing very well that the American people are with him.
Because they are. The public has constantly classified crime and security among its main concerns; Last November, it was generally a matter of the first five in general election output surveys. And the surveys constantly show that the overwhelming majorities, often in the range of 70-80%, support more police funds and oppose the radical remarking agenda of the left. Democrats, always in slaves to his Extreme Left Activist flankDefensor policies are stuck with rhetoric that most voters correctly identify as dangerous and absurd.
Trump knows that when these proposals floats, the Democrats and their corporate media allies will not respond with nuances. They will respond with instant indignation, as they did in 2020, when Trump sent federal agents to Portland to prevent violent anarchists on fire the courts. The media framed him as a martial law; The Oregonians sane as a basic government.
This dynamic develops again and again. When Trump highlights the border crisis and the need to deport unpleasant figures such as Mahmoud Khalil and Kilmar Abrego García, Democrats defend the open borders. When Trump attacks the indoctrination of gender ideology in schools, Democrats double by letting teachers hide the gender transitions of parents' children. When Trump condemns Pro-Ahamas rioters in US cities, Democrats cannot say a word of support to the Israel war against a foreign terrorist organization recognized by the State Department. When Trump signs an executive order that seeks to process the burning of flag, the Democrats defend the ardor of the flag.
Inside and about it. For now, it is a well -established pattern. And is politically devastating left. In addition, the relevant story is on Trump's side. This type of federal corrective dates back to the origins of the Republic; Those who are now going crazy could read about George Washington's efforts to cancel the Whiskey rebellion In 1794.
Call it the art of number 80-20. Together with his great sense of humor, Trump's instinctive ability to choose such winning battles is one of his greatest political assets. And this time, the winner will not only be Trump himself, they will also be Chicago and Baltimoreans.
Josh Hammer's last book is “Israel and civilization: the fate of the Jewish nation and the destiny of the West. ” This article was produced in collaboration with the creators Syndicate. @Josh_hammer
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Ideas expressed in the piece
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The author argues that Trump's proposal to deploy National Guard troops in Chicago and Baltimore represents the strategic political positioning instead of authoritarianism, which suggests that Trump stands out in forcing Democrats to defend unpopular positions on what the author characterizes as “issues of 80-20” where public opinion strongly favors the approaches of the law and order.
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The piece argues that the crime in these cities constitutes a genuine crisis that decades of democratic leadership have not been able to address, citing the almost 600 homicides of Chicago in 2024 and the violently highly high violent crime rates of Baltimore that disproportionately affect the black and working class communities that the Democrats say they represent that they represent that they represent that they represent that they represent that they represent that they represent that they represent that they represent that they represent that they represent that they represent that the democrats say they represent.
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The author presents the federal intervention as constitutionally solid and historically preceding, referring to the guarantee clause of article IV and the insurrection law of 1807, while indicating that Jefferson's presidents to Bush have deployed federal forces when local governance has taught catastrophically.
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The argument emphasizes that Trump's direct approach to crime resonates with US voters who constantly classify security between their main concerns, and the surveys show 70-80% support for the increase in police financing and the opposition to progressive disclaimment policies, while Democrats continue to rinse with the activist positions that most voters find dangerous and absurd.
Different views on the subject
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Local officials firmly oppose federal military intervention, with the governor of Illinois JB Pritzker calling Trump's comments “deranged” and promising that his administration is “ready to combat the deployments of the troops in court”, arguing that the state authority must be respected and that the federal military deployment for the application of internal law raises serious constitutional concerns[2].
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The recent crime data contradict the statements of persistent crisis, since the general crime rate of Chicago in June 2025 was 12% lower than in June 2018 and 8% lower than June 2019, with a violent crime in all categories in the first half of 2025 compared to 2024, and the fall of the homicide of the city is approximately twice the size of other large US cities American cities in the big American cities[1].
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Baltimore has experienced significant crimes reductions, with the city registering its lowest number of homicides, with 91 homicides and 218 non -fatal shootings as of September 1, 2025, which represents a 22% decrease in homicides during the first six months of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024[3][4].
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Experts and legal courts have raised concerns about military deployment for the application of national law, and a federal judge ruled that the deployment of the California National Guard violated the laws of the nineteenth century that prohibit military use for the application of national law, while opponents argue that the current tendencies of the crime do not justify the extraordinary federal measures.[2].
