Former President and current Republican candidate Donald Trump claimed during a rally in New York that Caracas, Venezuela, is now safer than many U.S. cities, alleging that Venezuelan authorities have emptied their prisons and sent criminals northward to the United States and blaming Kamala Harris for what he labeled a "horrible invasion."
The claim comes three days after the Biden administration, through the U.S. Department of State, reissued an advisory against traveling to Venezuela, citing ongoing risks such as "wrongful detentions, terrorism, kidnapping, the arbitrary enforcement of local laws, crime, civil unrest and poor health infrastructure."
The State Department also highlighted the ongoing shortages of gasoline, electricity, water, and medical supplies across much of Venezuela and warned about political rallies and state-sponsored repression which has spiked since Nicolás Maduro proclaimed himself the winner of last July's presidential elections which have been deemed fraudulent by many in the international community.
In March 2019, the U.S. withdrew all diplomatic personnel from its embassy in Caracas and suspended all consular services and the advisory points out that "the U.S. government has no ability to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens in Venezuela", adding that "U.S. citizens in Venezuela who require consular assistance should leave the country as soon as safely possible and should contact a U.S. embassy or consulate in another country."
Nevertheless, Trump claimed that Caracas has become a "safe and wonderful" city due to the departure of criminals who he claimed are being transported north at record levels:
"The crime rate in Venezuela has dropped to the lowest level they've ever had because they've taken their street gangs, their criminals, their drug traffickers, and have almost emptied their prisons. They'll be empty soon, in the next two months, I suppose. They can't get enough buses, but they're bringing people at record levels. These are criminals, and their crime rate is the lowest anyone can remember."
Trump: "Caracas has become a safe and wonderful city, unlike our cities." pic.twitter.com/sauJO5EmTm
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 26, 2024
It's not the first time that Trump has made similar comments about the Venezuelan capital. Back in August, during an interview with conservative live-streamer Adin Ross, he suggested that Caracas is safer because "they've taken their criminal elements" and "moved them into the United States." He went on to say that "in fact, the next interview we do, we'll do it in Caracas, Venezuela, because it's safer than many of our cities."
According to data from the Venezuelan Observatory of Violence, a non-profit organization that tracks crime in Venezuela, Caracas had a homicide rate of 50.8 per 100,000 people in 2022 which ranks lower than the homicide rates in just two U.S. cities—New Orleans (58.4 per 100,000) and St. Louis (57.2 per 100,000).
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