By JILL COLVIN and LINLEY SANDERS
WASHINGTON (AP) —Democrat Eric McWilliams doesn’t approve of Donald Trump sending National Guard troops to cities like Washington, D.C. And he’s certainly not supportive of most of the president’s policies.
But the 63-year old retired handyman and U.S. Navy veteran does praise Trump for one thing. “When it comes to crime,” he said, “He’s alright. He’s doing pretty good. How he’s doing it is another matter.”
“Crime is a big problem,” he went on. “At least he is doing something.”
McWilliams’ views reflect the thinking of a lot of Democrats, according to a recent poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. It finds that while most disapprove of how Trump is handling the issue, a large majority, 68%, see crime as a “major problem” in large cities. That’s despite the fact that statistics show crime, overall, is down across the nation, with some cities reporting 30-year lows.
The findings underscore the challenge facing Democratic leaders. They must thread the needle between criticizing Trump’s policies, which are deeply unpopular among their base, while at the same time not dismissing widespread concerns about safety, which are amplified in many news sources and in online forums like Facebook and the popular Nextdoor app.
That could create a vulnerability for the party heading into next year’s midterm elections.
Trump pushes Democrats to engage on an issue where he has the upper hand
While Trump remains unpopular overall, the new poll finds his approach to crime has earned him high marks compared to other issues like the economy and immigration. About half of U.S. adults, 53%, say they approve of his handling of crime.
The vast majority of Americans, 81%, also see crime as a “major problem” in large cities. That includes nearly all Republicans, roughly three-quarters of independents and nearly 7 in 10 Democrats.
The issue is complex, though, even for those who are concerned. In interviews, participants who oppose Trump’s unprecedented takeover of Washington, D.C.’s police department and threats to expand his efforts to other cities expressed alarm, calling his actions anti-American and part of what they see as an effort to distract the public from issues the White House would prefer they ignore.
They believe resources would be better spent investing in community policing, mental health services and passing meaningful laws to get guns off city streets.
But many also bemoaned the state of public safety in the country, even if they said they felt safe in their own neighborhoods and acknowledged that violent crime is down after a pandemic-era spike. Several noted that they or their neighbors had been the victims of serious crimes and complained about what they felt was a lackluster police response.
Brian Cornelia, 62, a retired foreman and lifelong Democrat who lives in Michigan, near Marquette, is displeased with the performance of both parties.
“Defund the police was nuts,” he said. “Now with Trump what he’s doing, that’s nuts too.”
He said that crime is “not at all” an issue where he lives and “down all over,” but nonetheless appreciates that Trump is doing something.
“Something is happening. We’ll see if it helps or not, but it’s better than not doing anything,” he said. Either way, he said Trump had backed Democrats into a corner.
“It’s bad. How are you going to say you don’t want crime to be dealt with?” he said. “If you argue with him, what, you’re soft on crime? It’s a Catch-22.”
Democrats try to find their own message
Part of the challenge for Democrats is that, historically, crime has not been a top issue for their base.
Gallup polling from April found that only about one-third of Democrats said they worried “a great deal” about crime and violence and were more likely to be concerned about the economy, Social Security, the environment, hunger and homelessness.
Crime has also traditionally been a stronger issue for Republicans, including in the 2024 election.
Democrats acknowledged the gap last week at a national party gathering in Minneapolis. In a presentation to Democratic National Committee members, party strategists noted Republicans spent about three times as much on crime-related ads as Democrats in recent presidential election years.
