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Crime: The Next Big Issue
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03/22/07 04:00 AM ET
It has long been my assumption that crime would be the next big issue for politicians in the 2008 campaign. After witnessing what happened in the D.C. area, where there were at least six murders in various parts of Prince George’s County and the District in a short span, I am convinced that crime is making a comeback.
I am not just making this up. In fact, violent crime increased last year, and many cities experienced double-digit or even triple-digit percentage increases in homicides and other violence, according to the latest statistics gathered by the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), a Washington, D.C.-based organization of police chiefs, sheriffs, and other state and local law enforcement leaders. Crime increased most noticeably in several categories in many midsized cities and in the Midwest.
In 2005, murders in the United States jumped 4.8 percent, and overall violent crime was up 2.5 percent for the year, marking the largest annual increase in crime in the United States since 1991, according to figures released Monday by the FBI.
For example, in Madison, Wis., a series of downtown muggings last year contributed to a dramatic increase in violent crime in the city, injecting an issue into the upcoming mayoral election. Fueled by a record number of robberies, violent crime jumped by 16.5 percent and all parts of the city saw increases.
Republicans ought to seize on this issue, and come up with a series of proposals to stop the rise in violent crime. The Democrats, who have a long-held reputation of being soft on crime, are extraordinarily vulnerable on this issue.
I think the crime issue is an important part of the debate on immigration. Because most of the increase in crime is happening in smaller cities and in border communities, my own guess is that much of it is being driven by illegal immigrants, especially illegal immigrant gangs, such as MS-13. That is especially true in the D.C. area.
The presidential candidate who has the best track record in fighting crime, of course, is Rudy Giuliani. He has done it in New York, and his no-nonsense approach to crime-fighting can work for the rest of America.
We shouldn’t tolerate crime in any community in America. Its increase should be unacceptable, and fighting crime should rise to the top of the issue agenda for Republicans in 2008.
I am not just making this up. In fact, violent crime increased last year, and many cities experienced double-digit or even triple-digit percentage increases in homicides and other violence, according to the latest statistics gathered by the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), a Washington, D.C.-based organization of police chiefs, sheriffs, and other state and local law enforcement leaders. Crime increased most noticeably in several categories in many midsized cities and in the Midwest.
In 2005, murders in the United States jumped 4.8 percent, and overall violent crime was up 2.5 percent for the year, marking the largest annual increase in crime in the United States since 1991, according to figures released Monday by the FBI.
For example, in Madison, Wis., a series of downtown muggings last year contributed to a dramatic increase in violent crime in the city, injecting an issue into the upcoming mayoral election. Fueled by a record number of robberies, violent crime jumped by 16.5 percent and all parts of the city saw increases.
Republicans ought to seize on this issue, and come up with a series of proposals to stop the rise in violent crime. The Democrats, who have a long-held reputation of being soft on crime, are extraordinarily vulnerable on this issue.
I think the crime issue is an important part of the debate on immigration. Because most of the increase in crime is happening in smaller cities and in border communities, my own guess is that much of it is being driven by illegal immigrants, especially illegal immigrant gangs, such as MS-13. That is especially true in the D.C. area.
The presidential candidate who has the best track record in fighting crime, of course, is Rudy Giuliani. He has done it in New York, and his no-nonsense approach to crime-fighting can work for the rest of America.
We shouldn’t tolerate crime in any community in America. Its increase should be unacceptable, and fighting crime should rise to the top of the issue agenda for Republicans in 2008.
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