Daily Wire:

The Wall Street Journal opinion writer and crime analyst Heather Mac Donald reports that, according to early numbers, it appears that the United States “saw the largest percentage increase in homicides” in its history, with murder rates rising an average of nearly 40% in 57 of the country’s largest cities.

Democrat-run cities hardest hit:

“The local murder increases in 2020 were startling: 95% in Milwaukee, 78% in Louisville, Ky., 74% in Seattle, 72% in Minneapolis, 62% in New Orleans, and 58% in Atlanta, according to data compiled by crime analyst Jeff Asher. Dozens of children, overwhelmingly black, were killed in drive-by shootings,” Mac Donald writes on Tuesday. “They were slain in their beds, living rooms, and strollers. They were struck down at barbecues, in their yards, in malls, in their parents’ cars, and at birthday parties. Fifty-five children were killed in Chicago in 2020, 17 in St. Louis, and 11 in Philadelphia. In South Los Angeles alone, 40 children were shot, some non-lethally, through September.”

The trend pans out across the country, according to a number of local stories published in the closing weeks of 2020.  The St. Louis, Missouri, homicide rate spiked the highest it has in half a century, according to St. Louis Today. Chicago had its single deadliest day since the mid-1960s back in May. And even in Texas, where Republicans control most positions of authority in state government, saw a statewide hike in the murder rate, according to local outlets.

What could be the cause of this?

Mac Donald suggests that while the correlation cannot be understated — particularly given that pandemic-related lockdowns appear to have driven the largest rise in poverty in 50 years — there’s another trend that also correlates with the rise in crime: the rise of the “defund the police” movement, that while generally unsuccessful even in progressive cities like Seattle, Washington, and Portland, Oregon, had a dramatic effect on officer morale and cities’ willingness to put more officers on the streets to handle issues, leaving many crime-prone neighborhoods further exposed.

“Cops now face a poisonous environment. Since the summer, they have been shot in the head, firebombed, and assaulted with lethal projectiles. An officer providing first aid at a crime scene may be met with a hail of rocks and bottles. Resistance is now the norm. Officers believe they face a political and legal environment that is eager to sacrifice them in the name of racial justice,” Mac Donald says. “As a result,” she adds, “the calculus for engagement has changed.”

Daily Wire reports on a “carjacking epidemic” in Chicago, which is one of the most Democrat-dominated cities in America.

Chicago gas stations are staffing up, hiring an army of private security guards to protect customers amid a “carjacking epidemic” that has the city on track to see 2,000 carjackings this year.

[…]“Carjackings in Chicago rose about 135% to 1,415 in 2020 from 603 in 2019,” the Tribune reported Sunday. “The 2020 tally was the highest figure recorded [in Chicago] since 2001 when Chicago logged only slightly more with 1,422 …”

Police have been slow to respond. So far, the Chicago Police Department has made just 108 arrests (16% of cases, per Chicago’s WGN News), and prosecutors have charged just 58 of those individuals with trespass to a vehicle.

Breitbart notes a carjacking problem in Philadelphia, too. Another city ruled from top to bottom by Democrats:

January 2021 carjackings in Philadelphia were up more than more than triple the number during the same time in 2020.

The Philadelphia Inquirer noted there were 59 carjackings in Philly during January 2021, while there were 18 in January 2020.

Ironically, 2020 broke a record for carjackings, with a total of 404 for the year. Yet 2021 quickly got on pace to surpass the numbers seen last year.

The funny thing about the spike in crimes in these cities is that the Democrat rulers have send a clear message to the citizens. You are sheep. You are not allowed to be armed. You are not allowed to defend yourself. And the police won’t defend you either, because we’ve intimidated them and defunded them. So enjoy being a victim of crime.

The funny thing is that people in these cities keep voting for Democrats. They must not be thinking very much.