Trump sets New Orleans as next federal crime target, not Chicago
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President Trump during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House on Sept. 3. Photo: Aaron Schwartz/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty Images
President Trump said on Wednesday that he may deploy the military to New Orleans before Chicago, prioritizing cities whose leaders ask for intervention.
Why it matters: The new stance is a pivot from Tuesday afternoon, when he seemed prepared to deploy the National Guard to Chicago.
The latest: "We're making a determination now," Trump said during an Oval Office meeting. "Do we go to Chicago or do we go to a place like New Orleans where we have a great governor, Jeff Landry, who wants us to come in and straighten out a very nice section of this country that's become quite, quite tough, quite bad?"
- He said it would take two weeks to straighten out crime in New Orleans. "Easier than D.C.," he added.
State of play: In an unprecedented move, Trump took federal control of Washington, D.C.'s police department and brought in National Guard troops out of concern over the city's crime rates.
- Trump laid out a plan to bring troops to Democratic-led cities, including Chicago and New York City.
- "We're pretty much waiting until we get asked," Trump said on Wednesday about Chicago and Baltimore.
What they're saying: "We will take President @realDonaldTrump's help from New Orleans to Shreveport!" Landry wrote on X.
- The City of New Orleans and New Orleans Police Department released a joint statement on Wednesday highlighting a reduction in crime and collaborations with state and federal law enforcement agencies.
- "The City of New Orleans and NOPD remain committed to sustaining this momentum, ensuring that every neighborhood continues to feel the impact of these combined efforts," the statement said.
Zoom in: New Orleans, a city of 363,000 people and where 57% of residents are Black, has seen homicides drop by 27% in the first half of 2025 compared to the same period last year, stats compiled by the Major Cities Chiefs Association (MCCA) showed.
- Violent and property crime in the U.S. fell to a 20-year low in 2024, per new FBI data, with early 2025 numbers showing homicides down in major cities.
- Trump has still claimed crime is out of control in Democratic-led cities like New Orleans, D.C. and Chicago — even as rates there also fall.
Yes, but: New Orleans had one of the nation's highest homicide rates at 34.2 per 100,000 residents in 2024, according to an Axios analysis of FBI data.
- Louisiana has the nation's fourth-highest homicide rate among states, with 9.3 per 100,00 residents, an Axios analysis found.
- That state's rate is not only driven by New Orleans but also Shreveport and Baton Rouge, according to Axios review.
Go deeper: National Guard illegally performed law enforcement in LA, judge rules
Editor's note: This article has been updated with more context.
Russell Contreras contributed reporting.
