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Late Night Host Uses Alabama Murder Rate to Slam Trump’s Chicago Crime Claim
Stephen Colbert cited FBI data showing Chicago's violent crime dropped 22% and shootings fell over 30% compared to last year, challenging Trump's claims and National Guard deployment plan.
- On September 2, President Donald Trump stated on Truth Social that Chicago holds the highest murder rate globally, referencing a violent Labor Day weekend during which over 50 individuals were shot and nine people were killed.
- Trump’s claim contrasted with expert analysis showing Chicago has led the U.S. in total murders for 13 consecutive years but does not have the highest homicide rate globally or nationally among all cities.
- Chicago officials reported declines in violent crime by over 20%, shootings by over 37%, and homicides down 31% through August 2025 compared to 2024, while 22 major U.S. cities, including Birmingham, Alabama, have higher murder rates.
- At a news conference on September 2, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker stated there is no emergency warranting federal troop deployment to Chicago and pledged to legally challenge any such attempt.
- Experts and local leaders warned that deploying federal troops would likely escalate violence and waste resources better spent on social programs addressing root causes of crime in Chicago's most affected neighborhoods.
11 Articles
11 Articles
Adding Context to Trump's Misleading Claims About Crime in Chicago
The Labor Day holiday became a violent weekend in the city of Chicago, as more than 50 people were shot and nine were killed from Aug. 29 to Sept. 2. Despite those grim statistics, President Donald Trump was wrong when he said on Truth Social on Sept. 2, “CHICAGO IS THE MURDER CAPITAL OF THE WORLD!” That’s not the case, experts told us, and Chicago’s overall homicide rate declined more than 30% in the first six months of this year as compared wi…
Sorry, Trump: Chicago Is Not The 'Murder Capital Of The World' — Not Even Close, Data Shows
Chicago has been a political punching bag for decades, and while there is crime here, statements about it being a "hellhole" are just plain false. “There are just a lot of cities that have higher homicide rates," one crime data analyst said.
Alabama Live
Dothan EagleLate night host uses Alabama murder rate to slam Trump’s Chicago crime claim
Stephen Colbert cheekily referenced the murder rate in Birmingham as evidence to debunk President Donald Trump’s claim that Chicago is the “worst and most dangerous city in the world.”On Wednesday’s episode of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” the host said “f*** you” to Trump over the president’s statements on social media regarding crime in Chicago.
'This is a scary time': Stephen Colbert has just two words for Donald Trump after his Chicago comments
In a no-holds-barred monologue, late-night host Stephen Colbert told President Donald Trump “f*** you” after the president called Chicago the “worst and most dangerous city” on social media. Colbert fired back at Trump’s recent comments and his plan to send National Guard troops to the city, which he referred to as a “hard right onto the fascism freeway.” Fox News reported that Trump’s social media posts and announcements indicated he would depl…
'F*** You': Colbert Rants At Trump For Citing Chicago's Murder Problem
CBS’s Stephen Colbert had an unconvincing rebuttal on Wednesday to President Trump’s recent Truth Social posts that portrayed Chicago as a crime-ridden and dangerous city. Colbert’s three-part response involved telling Trump “[bleep] you,” repeating some false statistics, and saying Chicago can’t be that bad because The Late Show traveled there in the summer of 2024 and came back alive.
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