US President Donald Trump announced that Chicago and New York - cities run by Democrats - will be "the next" to be placed under the control of federal law enforcement, like the capital Washington, in order to fight crime, Agence France-Presse reported, quoted by BTA.
Trump said last week that crime in the US capital was out of control and deployed National Guard officers and federal agents to the streets of Washington.
"We will make our cities very, very safe. Chicago is in chaos [...] so it will probably be next," the US president said from the Oval Office, adding that federal law enforcement "will help (then) New York as well."
"As you know, I have had excellent results among the black population and they want something to happen. "So I think Chicago will be our next target, and then we will help New York," the Republican president assured.
Over the past year, crime rates and murder rates have decreased in both Washington and Chicago, Reuters notes.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said he took Trump's statement seriously, but added that he had not received official notification from the federal government that military units would be deployed to the city or that any other extraordinary measures were expected.
The Chicago mayor described Trump's approach as "uncoordinated, unjustified and unhealthy". "There are many things the federal government can do to help us reduce crime and violence in Chicago, but sending in the military is not one of them," Johnson added.
New York has also seen a steady decline in violence in recent decades and currently has a relatively low homicide rate compared to other major U.S. cities, Reuters notes.
Trump has also threatened federal intervention in Democratic-controlled San Francisco.
The Republican president is presenting his actions as an emergency measure to help people feel safe again. Democrats and other critics, however, believe that his goal is to overstep his constitutional authority and establish federal control over Democratic-run cities.
The Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution generally prohibits the federal government from appointing state or municipal officials and from interfering in the judicial and criminal systems of individual states unless there are violations of the constitutional rights of citizens.