Although crime is declining, Washington is still far more dangerous than it should be, Charles Fain Lehman argues. Instead of just looking tough, “the administration should focus its resources on the people and places that make the District unusually unsafe.”
By ordering 800 National Guard troops to Washington, on the pretext of an illusory crime wave, President Trump has further dragged the U.S. military into domestic law enforcement, in a move credibly perceived as an ominous “test case.” www.nytimes.com/2025/08/13/o...
So when is the federal government going to focus on the violent crime rate in Alaska, Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee..?
nut up chuck
Bullies only understand hate and power and doing things by force. 💢 That's why they're called strongmen. It's not a compliment.
"If it wants to make a difference, instead of just look tough, the administration should focus its resources on the people and places that make the District unusually unsafe." really is there any use in even pretending that this is something that could happen? From this regime?
Sure. Yeah, DC crime is a thing. Especially in the NE and SE where resources are fewer and the powerful rarely venture. The inequality in DC is staggering. Has been for generations. And it’s going to get worse.
The most dangerous part of Washington is the Oval Office
Fuck right off The Atlantic
The only point he's making here is the "perception" of crime is the same as actual crime. This is fascist thinking. So sorry homelessness and "squalor" exist, maybe if you all actually supported efforts to improve these people's situations instead of just locking them up we'd all advance as a countr
Not “right” about anything and especially this. Born here, lived here my whole life. A normal American city. Especially when no republitroids are here. The 80s sucked…
He’s doesn’t live in DC does he?
Those people are in the white house ffs
Oh, why bother? He doesn't give a crap about crime in DC. He's not going to fix anything. Get real.
what is the magical level of crime that can stop a lawless President from deploying troops to patrol American cities?
🤦♂️
🤦♂️
bsky.app/profile/bold...
bsky.app/profile/mehd...
He said that the only person who dies on J6 was a Trump supporter. How quickly they forget about officer Sicknick.
The point is looking tough, stop trying to think of ways what Trump is doing is fine actually and talk about what he's actually doing, not whatever nonsense you personally wish he wanted to do.
Heaven forbid he work with DC officials instead of steam rolling over them.
This take on this dire situation is disingenuous and irresponsible. Ok, so there are some stats that point to crime in a metropolitan area. No shit! Several cities have crime issues. But why DC? Why deployment of federal troops? Why now? Talk about not seeing the forest through the trees.
The Atlantic, desperate to legitimise literal fascism.
He has no intention to fix it, he want to use it as an excuse to advance his authoritarian agenda! That's what the author is getting wrong! Trump is not answering to the crime in the wrong way, that is precisely the way he plans to use as excusr in any other blue city, specially durimg elections
Dear Atlantic- I like you but you should be ashamed for publishing this.
The serious crime problem starts at the top of the Executive Branch running a criminal enterprise in DC. Do better Atlantic!
What a crock. Written from your desk in NYC, no doubt. All American cities have pockets of crime DC isn’t even in the top 10 of American cities in terms of crime activity, so calling the city “unusually unsafe” is BS. Just one more reason I’m glad I cancelled my subscription months ago.
Every time I think of subscribing The Atlantic post this type of pandering tripe and I realize why I shouldn’t. Both-sidesism isn’t integrity, it’s accommodation.
Where does Charles Fain Lehman live? I was considering subscribing to the Atlantic but if this is the drek you are promoting, I guess not.
He's not trying to fix it. Stop wasting ink.
LOL Lehman *actually* thinks Trump cares about reducing crime instead of just another "big ego" authoritarian flex? Really? Doesn't make Lehman look too smart.
Guy from Manhattan Institute wants Trump to take a “firmer hand” over DC because of “shocking incidents” like the “Big Balls ‘attack.’” manhattan.institute/person/charl...
“[L]ocal leadership is failing. D.C. residents are worried about crime,…pervasive public disorder and shocking incidents like the assault on Coristine continue to capture public attention. The federal government should exercise a firmer hand, just as states sometimes preempt local governments…”
Anywhere a Trump family member goes the crime rate rises
Try looking in the mirror.
@theatlantic.com is happy to both sides us all the way to fascism. People are being rounded up and put in camps and The Atlantic will cover it as a positive somehow. Glad I cancelled my subscription to this trash
They’re not even trying to hide it either
What BS you're platforming. FACTS betray that quote. Why post it? “...statistics from the Department of Justice show that violent crime in the nation’s capital was at a 30-year low in 2024 &, according to Rep Eleanor H Norton (D-DC), is down 26% this year compared to the same period last year.
Former undersecretary of state and editor of Time magazine Richard Stengel noted that Washington is “not even in [the] top 10 dangerous cities in [the] U.S.” Heather Cox Richardson 8.11.25