During a recent interview with Fox 2 Detroit anchor Roop Raj, former President Donald Trump found himself entangled in a muddle of assertions concerning Venezuelan crime rates and their supposed impact on the United States. The interview, which will air in full on Thursday, saw Trump conclude with a shot at President Joe Biden on the issue of immigration—a topic Trump has indicated he wishes to leverage for his campaign.
Trump’s claim, “One stat before we go. Venezuela was very crime-ridden. They announced the other day 72% reduction in crime in the last year. You know why? They moved all their criminals from Venezuela right into the good old U.S.A. and [President Joe] Biden let them do it. It’s a disgrace,” sparked immediate scrutiny from Raj who pressed the former president, “But sir, where are those numbers coming from?”
Caught off guard, Trump stumbled through his response, stating, “Uhhh, I guess I get them from the papers in this case. I think it’s a federal statement or, well, they’re coming actually from Venezuela. They’re coming from Venezuela.” Raj responded with a commitment to verify the information, as Trump’s figures appeared shaky and ungrounded.
PolitiFact, the non-profit political fact-checking site, has previously described Trump’s spin on Venezuelan crime statistics as exaggerated. While crime rates in Venezuela have indeed decreased, they have not plummeted by the enormous percentage Trump alleges. Instead, estimates suggest a reduction of around 20% to 30%, with local sources attributing the decline to various factors such as economic conditions and the consolidation of organized crime—not the deportation of criminals to the United States, as Trump claims.
This isn’t the first time Trump has made such a claim; at a rally in Green Bay, Wisconsin, on April 2, he touted a 67% reduction in Venezuelan crime, attributing it to the relocation of criminals into the U.S. These repeated, inconsistent figures and their dubious origins have raised questions about the reliability of Trump’s assertions and the information he disseminates.
Relevant articles:
– Trump Unleashes Bizarre ‘Word Salad’ Answer During Live Nighttime TV Interview, huffpost.com, 05/01/2024
– Read the Full Transcripts of Donald Trump’s Interviews With TIME, TIME, 04/30/2024
– Local TV Anchor Catches Donald Trump Off Guard With A Simple Question, Yahoo News UK, 05/01/2024
– Trump Hit With Pointed Reminders After Complaining About Damaged Landmark, HuffPost, 05/01/2024
– Cher files for conservatorship of her son, claims Elijah Blue Allman’s life is ‘at risk’, Yahoo News Canada, 05/01/2024