President Donald Trump sits at his desk in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Monday, January 23, 2017. The National Archives and Records Administration says President Donald Trump’s tweets are considered presidential records that need to be preserved for historic purposes, but officials have yet to say whether his administration needs to preserve even altered or deleted tweets. (Photo: AP)
WASHINGTON, United States (AP) — President Donald Trump is serving notice he’s ready to “send in the Feds” if Chicago can’t reduce its homicide figures.
Trump tweeted Tuesday night, “If Chicago doesn’t fix the horrible ‘carnage’ going on, 228 shootings in 2017 with 42 killings (up 24 per cent from 2016), I will send in the Feds!”
Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson responded late Tuesday, saying: “The Chicago Police Department is more than willing to work with the federal government to build on our partnerships with DOJ (Department of Justice), FBI, DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) and ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms) and boost federal prosecution rates for gun crimes in Chicago.”
Mayor Rahm Emanuel criticized Trump on Monday for worrying about the size of the crowd at his inauguration. Emanuel, a long-time political ally of former President Barack Obama, also acknowledged his own frustration with Chicago’s crime rate.
Trump isn’t offering specifics about how the federal government could help. The White House website says, “Our country needs more law enforcement, more community engagement and more effective policing.”