On Monday, the Fraternal Order of Police America’s largest police union harshly criticized Jen Psaki after Fox News’s coverage of rising crimes rates was mocked by the White House press secretary. They also questioned the validity of discussing “soft on crime consequences”. “It’s wrong–very wrong for Ms. Psaki to suggest that violent crime is of no concern in our country or to laugh it off,” Patrick Yoes, President of Fraternal Order of Police, stated in a Monday statement.

Yoes said that she may feel safe at the White House, which is one of the most secure buildings in America, but not all people feel safe at work. “The world in which we live is becoming more dangerous is the danger that we face. This month, tens of thousands have been victims of crime and many of these people never return home.

Psaki made these comments last week on the podcast Pod Save America. She criticized Fox News for not covering crime, while other news outlets covered other stories.

“And then, Jeanine Pirro on Fox talks about soft-on-crime consequences. I mean, what does it even mean? There’s an alternate universe to some coverage. It’s frightening that so many people see it,” Psaki stated.

Psaki then claimed that Republicans had “voted against funding local cops programs” through voting against the American Rescue Plan. This claim she repeated Monday.

Psaki stated Monday that the American Rescue Plan included additional funding for local cops programs. This was something every Republican voted against. “I told them in that interview that they don’t like when we call it out. Because it’s a fact, I’ll keep calling that out.”

According to the Washington Post Fact Checker, that claim was “three pinocchios.” It pointed out that the $350m in state and local assistance allotted by American Rescue Plan was used for “variety budget-plugging purposes” as well as “no guarantee that police would receive a piece of the pie.”

Psaki also stated Monday that Biden increased funding for the COPS Hiring Program. This program provides funds to law enforcement agencies in order to hire more officers.

The progressive wing of his party has called for the defunding of police departments.

Biden stated earlier this month at the U.S. Conference of Mayors that “we shouldn’t cut funding for police departments.” “I suggested increasing funding.”

The coronavirus pandemic caused crime to rise and it has continued to rise during Biden’s tenure.

In 2021, at least 16 American cities set new records in murders.

This month, a Council on Criminal Justice study found that murders rose by 5% in 22 cities across the United States. Gun assaults increased by 8% and aggravated assaults rose by 4%. Domestic violence incidents increased by 4%.

Americans are more concerned about crime than ever.

A Fox Business poll found that 77% of registered voters are concerned about rising crime rates. This is the second most pressing issue facing Americans, after inflation.

President of the Fraternal Ord of Police, Yoes, attributed rising crime rates to “agenda driven prosecutors who went rogue.”

Yoes stated that many of them refuse to face charges against the so-called “low-level” or “nonviolent” offenders. “Under their leadership which has been abhorrent, many violent offenders do not stay in jail – they’re back out on the streets and are free to continue committing more crimes,” Yoes said.

Chesa Boudin, San Francisco District Attorney, ran on the platform that he would not prosecute “quality-of-life crimes” or other lower-level offenses. Due to the rise in crime in San Francisco, Chesa Boudin is facing recall elections this summer. According to police data, there was a 16.7% increase in homicides last year and a 22.7% increase in larceny thefts.

Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon will be facing recall elections in southern California. The city saw nearly 400 homicides in 2021, making it its deadliest year since 2007.

Alvin Bragg, New York City’s Manhattan District attorney issued a memo to his staff directing them to find alternatives to incarceration for cases that were not “very serious”. After being criticised, he walked the memo back and said that it had given “the wrong impression” about what he was planning.