Democratic Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker visited a noticeably low-crime area of Chicago on Monday in an attempt to convince everyone that the city is completely safe.
Pritzker posted a video to his X account of a notably nice part of Chicago and claimed that the city is in no way a “hellhole.” The governor responded directly to President Donald Trump after he called Chicago a “mess” and floated the idea of providing the city with federal assistance to combat crime.
“We have a lot of people running, having a great time. Doesn’t feel like a hellhole here. In fact, everybody’s having a great time and enjoying themselves. So, I don’t know who in Washington thinks that Chicago is some sort of hellhole, but, you may need to look inward,” Pritzker said.
Both Pritzker and Democrat Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson argued that Trump would be violating the U.S. Constitution if he deployed the National Guard to Chicago. Johnson accused Trump on Aug. 11 of spreading misinformation about the crime statistics in Chicago and that the National Guard’s presence would only “undermine” public safety.
During a Friday announcement, Trump said he will “probably” take over the city following his crackdown on violent crime in Washington, D.C. Since Aug. 7, the federal takeover in Washington has led to 1,007 arrests and 111 illegal firearm confiscations, U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C., Jeanine Pirro announced on Monday.
“Chicago is a mess. You have an incompetent mayor, grossly incompetent, and we’ll straighten that one out probably next, that will be our next one after this, and it won’t even be tough. And the people in Chicago, Mr. Vice President, are screaming for us to come,” Trump said in the Oval Office.
Chicago witnessed a significant surge in homicides in the past decade and reached a 25-year high in 2021 with 797 victims, according to The Chicago Tribune.
There have been 262 homicides in Chicago as of August 25, which is 117 fewer incidents in comparison to 2024, according to the Chicago Tribune. Total violent crime reportedly decreased by 22% in the first half of 2025 in comparison to the previous year.
In Washington, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) allegedly undercounted crimes by downgrading several felonies to misdemeanors. The nation’s capital settled a lawsuit with former Sergeant Charlotte Djossou on Aug. 14, who alleged in 2020 that the city intentionally fudged its crime numbers.
Washington had the fourth-highest murder rate in the U.S. in 2024, which stood above Chicago and New York City, according to the Rochester Institute for Technology.
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