Trump calls Chicago ‘out of control’ after train attack left woman critically burned
In a recent statement, President Donald Trump condemned the rising crime rates in Chicago, citing the alarming case of Bethany MaGee, a 26-year-old woman who was allegedly set on fire by Lawrence Reed, a man with a staggering 72 prior arrests. During a Thanksgiving turkey pardon event at the White House, Trump criticized what he termed “liberal judges” for allowing Reed to remain free on bond despite his extensive criminal history. This incident, alongside a series of violent events in the city, including a fatal shooting that left a teenager dead and several others injured, has fueled Trump’s ongoing calls for a federal intervention to restore safety in Chicago.
Trump has been vocal about deploying National Guard troops to tackle crime in Chicago, similar to actions taken in other cities like Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. He argues that such deployments have previously led to significant reductions in crime rates. However, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson have firmly opposed this idea, labeling it unconstitutional and insisting that Chicago does not face the crisis that Trump describes. In his remarks, Trump expressed frustration with the local leadership, stating, “The mayor is incompetent, and the governor is a big fat slob,” and urged them to accept federal assistance to prevent further deterioration of safety in the city.
Critics of Chicago’s progressive criminal justice policies point to this incident as a clear example of the consequences of releasing career criminals back into the community. Reed had been placed on electronic monitoring after being charged with assaulting a social worker, but he repeatedly violated the terms of his release. The case has sparked a broader debate about the effectiveness of liberal crime policies, with the White House emphasizing that such approaches are endangering law-abiding citizens. As crime continues to dominate headlines in Chicago, the clash between federal and local authorities over how to address these issues remains a contentious topic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvH9-JZLwQw
President
Donald Trump
on Tuesday said crime in Chicago is “out of control” and blasted so-called “liberal judges” after a woman was set on fire in the deep-blue city last week — allegedly by a man with 72 prior arrests who had been out on bond despite prosecutors calling for him to be incarcerated.
Trump, speaking at the White House during the annual Thanksgiving turkey pardon, again called on Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson to allow National Guard troops to be deployed to the Windy City to tackle crime amid a wave of recent violent incidents.
The president’s plea came a week after Bethany MaGee, 26,
was allegedly set on fire
by 50-year-old Lawrence Reed, who has spent decades cycling through the criminal justice system. Additionally, a teenager was fatally shot and at least eight others were injured after two shootings on Friday night in downtown Chicago.
“This is a very serious thing,” Trump said. “They burned this beautiful woman riding in a train. A man was arrested 72 times. 72 times. Think of that. And they’ll let him out again, the liberal judges will let him out again.”
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Trump for months has attempted to
send troops to Chicago
, as he has done in Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and Memphis, Tenn., to help curb violent crime. He has said those deployments caused crime to plummet.
But Pritzker and Johnson have staunchly opposed deploying troops. They have called any deployment unconstitutional and insisted the city is not facing the kind of crime crisis the White House claims. The president has also floated invoking the Insurrection Act to tackle violent crime in Chicago.
“But we’re ready to go,” Trump said Tuesday. “You know, we’ve been moving toward Chicago. We have a governor that thinks it’s wonderful that only like seven people were killed this week… It’s horrible what’s happening in Chicago.”
Trump said a federal response would make Chicago “totally safe” in a matter of weeks.
“And the people of Chicago want us to go there. And if you look at the crime that’s taking place in Chicago in the last two weeks, just take a look. It’s on the front page of every newspaper,” Trump said. “It’s out of control. The mayor is incompetent, and the governor is a big fat slob. He ought to invite us in and say, ‘please make Chicago safe.’”
“We’re going to lose a great city if we don’t do it quickly,” Trump added.
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Critics of Illinois’ progressive criminal policies point to the attack on MaGee as the latest in a string of crimes perpetrated by career criminals who are repeatedly released back onto the streets to target law-abiding citizens.
Reed, MaGee’s alleged attacker, had been ordered onto electronic monitoring on Aug. 22 when Cook County Judge Teresa Molina-Gonzalez denied a prosecution request to keep him jailed on felony allegations that he knocked a social worker unconscious inside MacNeal Hospital’s psychiatric ward.
During that hearing, transcripts show Molina-Gonzalez told prosecutors, “I can’t keep everybody in jail because the State’s Attorney wants me to.”
According to court documents in that battery case, Cook County electronic monitoring records show Reed repeatedly violated his curfew and movement restrictions in the days leading up to the alleged Chicago Transit Authority attack on MaGee on Nov. 17.
Shortly before Trump’s comments on Tuesday, the White House weighed in on the attack, blasting
left-wing policies in deep-blue cities
.
“Liberal soft-on-crime policies are FAILING American communities and endangering law-abiding citizens,” the White House wrote on X.
“A career criminal with 72 arrests should have never been free to roam the streets. Pray for Bethany.”
Fox News’ Stephen Sorace, Greg Wehner, Alexandra Koch and Patrick McGovern contributed to this report.
