Trump says crime is soaring, and immigrants are to blame. The data tell another story

Former President Donald Trump repeated claims during Tuesday's debate that crime is "through the roof" and that much of it is being caused by immigrants. Data suggest both claims are incorrect.

Asked about his proposal for "the largest deportation operation" in the nation's history to remove millions of people in the U.S. without documentation, Trump said the number is greater than 11 million because Vice President Kamala Harris and the Biden administration "allowed criminals, many many millions of criminals, they allowed terrorists, they allowed common street criminals, they allowed people to come in, drug dealers, to come into our country."

He said other countries have seen crime reductions because "they've taken their criminals off the street and they've given them to her to put into our country."

Trump claimed that "all over the world, crime is down — all over the world except here. Crime here is up and through the roof, despite their fraudulent statements that they made." In the U.S., he said, crime "is through the roof" and has taken a "new form" as "migrant crime."

When ABC moderator David Muir pointed out that FBI data show crime is down, Trump called that a "fraud."

Asked to respond, Harris said Trump's claims were "so rich" coming from "someone who has been prosecuted for national security crimes, economic crimes, election interference, has been found liable for sexual assault, and his next big court appearance is in November at his own criminal sentencing."

Harris said it was time to "turn the page."

Crime and public safety have been a major focus of the presidential race, with each candidate claiming to have a strong record on such matters while attacking their opponent's record.

Harris has cast herself as a sharp prosecutor who has taken on sexual predators, unscrupulous businesses and banks and transnational gangs throughout her career, including as San Francisco's district attorney and California's attorney general.

She has also promoted herself in the past as a "progressive prosecutor" who has supported various criminal justice reform measures — including putting body-worn cameras on police officers — and tough federal oversight of local-level police departments. She has also touted huge investments into local law enforcement agencies under the Biden administration, including through COVID-19 relief funds.

Harris has cast Trump as the type of criminal she has gone after in the past. She has also called out his promise to pardon insurrectionists who attacked the U.S. Capitol and its police officers on Jan. 6, 2021, in an attempt to overthrow President Biden's election in Trump's favor.

Trump has cast himself as a strong ally of law enforcement and as someone who would empower police officers — and immigration officials — to be more aggressive in going after criminals on the street.

He has called for a return to old policing tactics that have raised constitutional concerns in the past, such as "stop and frisk" and "broken windows" policing; has suggested police shouldn't be "too nice" while arresting suspects; and has dismissed the need for federal oversight of police departments.

Trump has cast Harris as a "pro-crime" progressive whose policies in the past have gone soft on criminals and allowed them to commit crimes again. He has also cast her as a proponent of "defunding" police, pointing in part to comments Harris made in 2020 about the need to reimagine public safety and redirect some law enforcement funds to other priorities such as education, healthcare and job opportunities in vulnerable communities.

Violent crime shot up across the country at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 while Trump was president, but has since come down sharply. Studies for years have shown that immigrants are less likely than U.S.-born citizens to be incarcerated for committing crimes.

Both Trump and Harris have touted support from law enforcement. Trump last week received the endorsement of the National Fraternal Order of Police, which has more than 375,000 members nationwide. Harris released a list of 100 current and former law enforcement officials who have endorsed her.

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