(DC Pundit) – As we inch closer to Election Day, one issue is grabbing headlines and potentially swaying voters: crime in swing states.
Let’s face it, crime is on everyone’s mind these days, especially in battleground states like Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Arizona. Folks are worried about their safety, and they’re taking a hard look at the Biden-Harris administration’s handling of the situation.
A recent Washington Post/Schar School poll, conducted between September 30 and October 15, 2024, in key swing states, shows that nearly four out of five voters see crime as a big deal in this election. And here’s the kicker: Trump’s got a solid lead over Vice President Kamala Harris when it comes to tackling crime. Voters trust him more by about ten points.
Now, the Biden-Harris team has been all about police reform and community-based approaches to fighting crime. Harris famously backed the “defund the police” movement, saying it “rightly” questioned how we spend money on policing versus things like education and mental health. She also claimed that more cops don’t always mean safer streets.
But critics aren’t buying it. They say these soft-on-crime policies have only made things worse. Republican Congressman John Joyce from Pennsylvania didn’t mince words last month: “For the past four years, American communities have been forced to live with failed, soft-on-crime policies that have sought to free violent criminals and defund our law enforcement.”
On the flip side of Harris, Trump’s been beating the “law and order” drum since day one. He’s promising to “end the lawlessness once again” and is all about backing the police and getting tough on criminals.
Trump’s not pulling any punches, recently accusing Harris of having “blood on her hands” due to the rise in migrant crime. Ouch.
While the Biden-Harris team has tried to downplay crime rates, Trump’s campaign isn’t having it. They claim the administration’s been cooking the books on crime data and overseeing a massive spike in violent crime. In fact, 2022 and 2023 were two of the deadliest years since 2012. And get this: after initially reporting a slight dip in violent crime for 2022, the FBI quietly revised their numbers to show a 4.5 percent increase. Talk about sketchy.
Trump’s has hammered Harris on what he calls a “migrant crime epidemic” in swing states like Michigan, Wisconsin, and Arizona. He’s been posting about migrants suspected of serious crimes like murder, child sexual assault, and rape, happening right in these crucial battleground states.
KAMALA HARRIS' MIGRANT CRIME EPIDEMIC IN MICHIGAN…
Donald Trump Truth Social 02:35 PM EST 08/23/24 @realDonaldTrump pic.twitter.com/2llmvjjm7R
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) August 23, 2024
Speaking of which, there are seven swing states that could make or break this election: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Together, they’ve got 93 electoral votes up for grabs. That’s enough to decide who gets the keys to the White House.
With just over two weeks to go, recent polls show Trump gaining ground in key states like Wisconsin, Michigan, and Georgia. He’s now leading Harris by slim margins in these places. An internal poll from his campaign even shows Trump ahead in all seven swing states, leading by one to five percentage points.
Voters are faced with a choice: who do they trust to keep them safe? Trump’s tough-on-crime stance is giving him a big boost with voters who want to see crime rates drop. Meanwhile, Harris and her team are scrambling to address these concerns before the clock strikes midnight.
In the end, worries about crime, along with some major foreign policy blunders by the current administration, could be what drives voters to the polls – and Trump back into the Oval Office.
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