Survey: Majority Say Violent Crime in the US Getting ‘Worse,’ Half Doubt Biden’s Ability to Solve It

Police investigate a crime scene after two people were shot in Chicago on June 15. Scott Olson/Getty Images

A Rasmussen Reports survey released Friday found that while the majority of likely Democrat and Republican voters agree violent crime in the United States is getting “worse,” the groups’ confidence in Biden’s ability to solve this problem differs greatly.

According to the poll, 65 percent of likely voters said violent crime is getting “worse,” 22 percent said it is “staying about the same,” 10 percent said it’s “better,” and 3 percent were unsure. This view is consistent across party lines, with 72 percent of Republicans, 65 percent of independents, and 59 percent of Democrats saying violent crime is getting “worse” in the country.

However, the opinions diverged when voters were asked to specify their confidence in the current president to solve the violent crime issue, with 77 percent of Democrats indicating confidence in Biden compared to only 20 percent of Republicans.

Overall, 50 percent expressed little confidence in Biden’s ability to handle, with 35 percent saying they are “not at all confident” and 15 percent saying they are “not very” confident. Forty-six percent expressed at least some confidence in Biden.

The survey was conducted on May 25-26 on 900 likely voters. The sampling error is +/- 3 percent with a 95% level of confidence.

According to the National Fraternal Order of Police, murder rates have skyrocketed in cities where the government has defunded the police. As of May 25, the murder rate in Philadelphia was up 40 percent, in Minneapolis 56 percent, in Portland 800 percent, in New York City 22 percent, in Chicago 22 percent, in Los Angeles 27 percent, and in Washington D.C. 35 percent.

In separate data compiled by analyst Jeff Asher, who studied crime rates in more than 50 cities, found that Chicago recorded nearly 750 homicides in 2020, about 55 percent more than in 2019. Los Angeles had 343 homicides, a 33 percent jump from 2019, while New York saw 437 homicides, a 39 percent increase from 2019.

Attorney General Merrick Garland announced on May 26 a new three-pronged initiative to help combat the surge of violent crime in several U.S. cities in the wake of George Floyd’s death last summer.

Garland’s strategy consists of directing the Justice Department’s 94 U.S. attorney’s offices to adopt a set of principles focused on improving the department’s approach to reducing violent crime, such as improving community relations and investing in prevention programs.

The initiative will also require U.S. attorney’s offices to work closely with state, local, federal, tribal, and community partners to address violent crimes seen over the summer, such as murders, shootings, and robberies. The current Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) program also will be updated.

Included in Biden’s initial infrastructure plan, was a $5 billion request to Congress for community violence prevention programs over eight years. Biden’s proposed solution targets gun-related deaths in low-income urban neighborhoods.

Biden has vowed to enact gun control with or without Congress’s help to bring down the death from mass shootings, gang-related and one-on-one gun murders, and gun suicides. While Democrats support such measures, Republicans say they oppose Biden’s gun control policies because they punish law-abiding citizens who get their guns legally, while criminals get around the system.

During an April press conference to announce his executive action on gun control, he said laws like universal background checks and red flag laws (that take guns away from those deemed mentally unfit) are not unconstitutional.

“Gun violence in this country is an epidemic, and it’s an international embarrassment,” said Biden.

“President Biden wants to let violent criminals go free but take guns from law-abiding citizens,” Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) said in a social media statement.

Janita Kan contributed to this report.