The White House is pointing to a significant drop in violent crime across the country as evidence that President Trump's policies are working, while the Democratic National Committee adopted a nonbinding resolution over the weekend urging congressional Democrats to rethink the future of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The dual developments highlight an election-year divide over law enforcement priorities. The DNC vote does not alter the party platform for 2028 but signals internal debate about immigration enforcement approaches within the Democratic Party.
What the Right Is Saying
The White House attributes nationwide crime reductions directly to Trump's administration, citing data showing violent crime reaching historic lows across multiple categories.
Lauren Bis, a White House spokesperson, told The Daily Wire that President Trump is delivering on his promise to make America safe. "Unlike Defund-the-Police Democrats who release violent criminal illegal aliens into our communities and want cashless bail, President Trump is on the side of law and order and will continue to deliver safe neighborhoods for American families," Bis said.
The administration points to specific enforcement actions as evidence of its approach working. In Baltimore alone, federal immigration officers arrested Edwin Sanchez Montiel, an MS-13 gang member from El Salvador with a murder conviction; Franklin Chavarria, an illegal immigrant convicted of murder; and Julio Gonzalez-Cortez, also an illegal immigrant convicted of murder.
Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee said she worked with the FBI and Department of Justice to "surge resources to Memphis, where federal law enforcement have apprehended gang members who have plagued the city with violent crime."
Attorney General Pam Bondi signed 14 memos after taking office last year, including one renewing enforcement of the federal death penalty and another directing prosecutors to pursue the most serious readily provable offenses in cases involving human trafficking, transnational organized crime, and immigration enforcement.
What the Left Is Saying
Democratic leaders are framing their position as a push for reform rather than chaos, emphasizing that many in the party believe current immigration enforcement has strayed from its original mission.
DNC Chairman Ken Martin, who sponsored the resolution, said the goal is finding a better approach to immigration enforcement. "The one thing that unites Democrats, regardless of their position on reform versus abolish or whatever other ways to change what's happening, is people believe that what ICE is doing right now and CBP [U.S. Customs and Border Protection] and the federal government should stop," Martin said. "There has to be a better way."
The reform measure drew broader committee support than an abolition proposal, reflecting cautious language among many Democrats heading into midterm elections.
Some party members are also walking back previous comments about defunding police departments. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez acknowledged in an interview with ABC that the rhetoric has become politically difficult. "I have a local city councilman that has this saying, 'Woke 1 was crazy,'" she said, adding that voters should evaluate candidates based on current positions rather than past statements.
Michigan Democratic Senate Candidate Abdul El-Sayed deleted past social media posts supporting police defunding and distanced himself from the position as the party seeks to present a more mainstream law-and-order message to voters.
What the Numbers Show
Crime statistics show notable declines since 2025 across multiple categories nationwide:
Murder rates have fallen 18.1% year-over-year. The White House noted that the national murder rate has reached a 125-year low, citing figures from federal law enforcement agencies.
Additional violent crime data shows rape down 7.6%, robbery down 18.5%, and aggravated assault down 7.2% since 2025, according to statistics compiled by the administration.
In Baltimore specifically, the city recorded 60 murders from January through August of this year. Four years ago in the same timeframe, that number was approximately 160. The city had previously ranked as the third-most dangerous in the United States over the preceding decade, with annual murder totals averaging nearly 300.
These figures represent a significant shift for a city that had consistently recorded among the highest per-capita violent crime rates in the country.
The Bottom Line
The competing narratives reflect different priorities heading into the midterm elections. Republicans are emphasizing public safety gains and linking Democratic candidates to unpopular "defund the police" rhetoric, while Democrats are attempting to pivot toward reform-minded positions on immigration enforcement without fully embracing more radical proposals.
The DNC resolution is nonbinding and does not change current law or party policy for 2028. Any actual legislative changes to ICE's structure would require congressional action, which faces significant procedural hurdles in the current political environment.
Both sides are betting that their messaging on crime and public safety will resonate with moderate voters who prioritize stability over ideological positions. The polling suggests that "defund the police" remains politically toxic for many Americans, while immigration enforcement continues to divide the electorate along regional and partisan lines.