President Donald Trump announced Monday that he is deploying a safety task force to Memphis, Tennessee, describing the city as “deeply troubled”.
He also hinted which Democratic-led cities that could be next on his list.
“I’m tired of crime…”
Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump signed a presidential memorandum to establish the Memphis Safe Task Force, emphasizing the need to combat rising crime. “Today, at the request of Gov. Bill Lee of Tennessee… I’m signing a Presidential Memorandum to establish the Memphis Safe Task Force — and it’s very important because of the crime that’s going on,” Trump said.
The measure didn’t come as a complete surprise. Just last week, during an interview with Fox & Friends, Trump called Memphis “troubled” and said, “we’re going to fix that just like we did Washington.”
The move is part of the Trump administration’s ongoing effort to send federal forces to Democratic-led cities, following deployments to Washington, D.C., in August and Los Angeles in June, which aimed to quell anti-ICE protests.
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee (R) stood alongside Trump and voiced his full support. “I’m tired of crime holding the great city of Memphis back,” he said.
Contrasting views
According to a White House statement, Memphis is hailed as a “cornerstone of American culture,” noted for being Elvis Presley’s hometown and recognized as the birthplace of rock ’n’ roll and the blues.
Yet the city also struggles with alarming crime, the White House notes. FBI data shows that in 2024, Memphis had the highest violent crime rate in the U.S., ranking among the worst in the nation for murder, robbery, aggravated assault, and property crimes.
So far this year, the city has already recorded 150 murders — far more than what President Trump considers acceptable.
At the same time, the Memphis Police Department reports historic drops in crime, with decreases across all major categories during the first eight months of 2025 compared to previous years.
Overall crime has fallen to a 25-year low, with robbery, burglary, and larceny also hitting 25-year lows. Murder rates are at a six-year low, aggravated assault at a five-year low, and sexual assault at a twenty-year low.
The news set Trump off, and he immediately took to his own platform, Truth Social:
Reveals which city is next
During Monday’s Oval Office signing, the president also made it clear that Memphis is only the beginning.
“Crime is not only occurring in places such as Memphis, a blue city in a red state,” he warned. “We’re going to be doing Chicago, probably next. This team will deploy the full power of federal law enforcement.” He added that the task force will be “a replica of our extraordinarily successful efforts [in D.C.],” and noted that federal agents had already been sent to Memphis months ago. “Now we are sending the big force,” he said, referring to the National Guard.
Meanwhile, Memphis Mayor Paul Young, a Democrat, told CNN on Saturday that he was far from “happy” about the planned deployment.
