Trump Announces Next ‘Deeply Troubled’ American City National Guard Will Clean Up

President Donald Trump announced on Friday morning that the National Guard will be deployed to crime-ridden Memphis, a Democrat-run city in deep-red Tennessee.

“We’re going to Memphis. I’m just announcing that now,” Trump told “Fox & Friends” during an interview in the studio. “National Guard and anybody else we need, and by the way, we’re bringing the military too if we need it.”

Trump has recently suggested that multiple cities — such as Chicago, Baltimore, and New Orleans — could be next on his list for a federal intervention to combat violent crime. His decision to deploy troops to Memphis means that the president will be working with a friendly state government. Tennessee Republican Governor Bill Lee said on Wednesday that he is collaborating with the Trump administration on a plan to address crime in Memphis.

“For months, I have been in constant communication with the Trump Administration to develop a strategic plan to combat crime in Memphis, leveraging the full extent of both federal and state resources,” Lee said. “This multi-phased approach includes Operation Viper — an ongoing FBI mission with a dedicated task force of federal, state, and local law enforcement that has already made hundreds of arrests targeting the most violent offenders. Additionally, I have activated a new Tennessee Highway Patrol surge to support the Memphis Police Department that will include 50 more troopers, bringing our THP presence in Shelby County to record levels.”

Recently released FBI data on violent crime rates in 2024 showed that Memphis is the most violent city in the United States, NBC’s Nashville affiliate, WSMV 4, reported last week. Last year, Memphis saw 2,501 instances of violent crime for every 100,000 people. The violent crime rate in Memphis was far higher than that of other most violent cities in America. The next highest on the list was Oakland, California, with 1,925 violent crimes reported for every 100,000 people, and Detroit was No. 3 with 1,781 violent crimes per 100,000 people.

Trump has praised the work of the National Guard and federal law enforcement agents in Washington, D.C., after he sent them into the nation’s capital and directed the Metropolitan Police Department to crack down on violent crime. The president said he wants to address violent crime in cities across the United States.

“Almost every city that’s in trouble is run by Democrats,” Trump told “Fox & Friends” on Friday morning. “Cashless bail is a disaster.”

Trump’s recent moves to deploy the National Guard to D.C. and Los Angeles have been blasted by Democrats, who claim that the president’s efforts to address violent crime in the U.S. are a power grab. Earlier this month, a federal judge ruled that Trump broke the law when he deployed the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles during violent anti-ICE protests in June.