White House Flip-Flops on DC Crime Numbers

In a stunning reversal, the White House is now embracing crime statistics in Washington D.C. that it previously dismissed as “fake” and “manipulated”. The sudden change of heart comes after President Donald Trump took control of the city’s police force, and the same data that was once deemed untrustworthy is now being touted as a success story for the administration.

During a press briefing on Thursday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt highlighted the decline in crime rates, citing a 19% drop in total crime and a 30% drop in violent crime. She also pointed to significant reductions in homicides, robberies, car thefts, and assaults. However, this newfound enthusiasm for the data is at odds with the administration’s previous stance.

Just months ago, President Trump was quick to discredit the same statistics, claiming that they were fabricated and that the city was actually becoming more violent. The trend of declining crime rates, which began before Trump’s takeover of the police force, was seen as inconvenient to his narrative of a city in chaos. National Democrats were swift to point out that violent crime had already fallen to a 30-year low, contradicting the President’s claims of a “violent hellscape”.

The Council on Criminal Justice, a non-partisan think tank, has confirmed that crime rates in D.C. have indeed been declining since 2023, mirroring trends in other cities. However, the capital still experiences more violence than most cities. The White House’s sudden about-face on the data has raised eyebrows, with critics accusing the administration of cherry-picking statistics to suit its own agenda.

This flip-flop is the latest example of the Trump administration’s selective use of data to advance its own narrative. By embracing statistics that were once deemed false, the White House is undermining its own credibility and raising questions about its commitment to accuracy and transparency. As the city continues to grapple with crime and public safety issues, it remains to be seen whether the administration’s newfound enthusiasm for the data will translate into meaningful policy initiatives or simply serve as a propaganda tool.