AFTER PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP on Wednesday announced he’s considering sending National Guard troops to San Francisco, local leaders are pushing back by citing a drop in crime.
“San Francisco neither needs nor wants Trump’s personal army on our streets,” state Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, said in a statement. “We don’t need Trump’s authoritarian crackdown in our city. Bottom line: stay the hell out of San Francisco.”
During a press conference Wednesday, Trump reiterated the “doom loop” narrative that San Francisco is riddled with crime, saying that it was once a great city 10 or 15 years ago and that “now it’s a mess.”
“I’m going to be strongly recommending, at the request of government officials, which is always nice, that you start looking at San Francisco,” Trump said.
The president did not specify what government officials had made such a request.
Since taking office, Trump has deployed National Guard troops to Portland, Oregon, as well as Chicago, Los Angeles and other cities. He has pointed to alleged rampant crime and civil unrest as reasons to send in troops.
Local, state and federal elected officials, including Wiener, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie, District Attorney Brooke Jenkins, Gov. Gavin Newsom, California Attorney General Rob Bonta, U.S. Rep. Kevin Mullin, D-San Mateo, and Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi have since spoke out against Trump’s threats. They referred to crime statistics showing a reduction in overall crime in San Francisco and statewide so far this year compared to the last several years.
“We are at 70-year lows when it comes to homicides,” Lurie said Wednesday during a visit to a cadet class at the San Francisco Police Academy. “Car break-ins are at 22-year lows. We had the lowest number of tent encampments on record.”
According to crime data from SFPD, San Francisco has seen overall crime decline by 26%, violent crimes drop by 19%, and property crimes decrease by 28% for the first eight months of 2025 compared to the same time period last year.
Lurie’s comments were originally in response to Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff saying over the weekend that he would support bringing the National Guard to San Francisco, where Salesforce is headquartered.
“I am clear-eyed about the challenges that we have,” Lurie said at the police academy. “We have a lot of work to do. But I trust our local law enforcement. I trust our incredible district attorney, Brooke Jenkins, and our sheriff — they are doing the work.”
San Francisco neither needs nor wants Trump’s personal army on our streets. … Bottom line: stay the hell out of San Francisco.
State Sen. Scott Wiener
Bonta also criticized Trump’s threats, saying he’s prepared to go to court if the National Guard is deployed to San Francisco.
“I don’t see any basis for a lawful deployment of the National Guard to San Francisco,” Bonta said Thursday during a virtual briefing on separate litigation against the federal government.
“There needs to be some sort of emergency situation, an invasion or rebellion, or inability to enforce the laws with the regular forces. None of that is even close to being present in San Francisco. If there is an unlawful deployment, a federalization of the National Guard, and deployment of that guard to San Francisco, we expect to be in court immediately.”
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