President Donald Trump points to spiking crime and delivers stark statistics on murders and shootings as part of his “law and order” campaign emphasis that suggests cities are overrun with violence that only he can stop.
Several cities have seen a sobering surge in murders this summer, but those numbers capture only a small snapshot of crime in the United States, and Trump's strategy highlights how data can be easily molded to suit the moment. During a town hall Tuesday in Pennsylvania, Trump spoke about how crime was soaring in cities where there have been protests against police brutality after the death of George Floyd in May.