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Earlier this week, Axios reported a morbid bit of good news in a story headlined, “U.S. murders on pace for largest one-year drop on record.” Well, thank goodness. But —of course— Axios buried the lede. The real story was: violent crime is down across the board, with murders reduced by a whopping -20% — which is “on pace” for the largest one-year drop in history.




Axios was stingy with its praise. “President Trump,” it admitted, “has prioritized cracking down on violent crime in his second term, though there is no clear evidence linking his policies to the decline.” After all, the post-pandemic violent crime surge might have fixed itself.

Next, note Axios’ elevated goalposts. Axios didn’t claim there was “no evidence” that the historic crime drops were related to Trump’s policies. It used weasel words and said there was “no clear evidence.” ‘Clear’ is a subjective modifier.

Whether you will credit President Trump’s all-of-government crime crackdown —including massive immigration enforcement— the trend remains great news. And rates continue improving. Not that Axios will do more than notice the happy accident. It did, however, admit that murders in Washington, DC, where Trump has focused on crime, are down a historic -28%. So.

In other words, the plan is working. “Unexpectedly.” All this momentum will carry us into next year with a racing start. It will be glorious.