Crime Fighter, 47-Style

Everyone fears crime, no matter where they live. Even when the numbers show improvement, what we really want is zero crime. The big question is always: how do we get there? Some believe in tough federal crackdowns, while others, like me, think crime-fighting should be left to local police. (Do you remember when Republicans used to tout “States’ Rights”?)

Thanks to Robert Reich’s recent Substack post, I realized it may be time to give credit where credit is due — and point out that we’re not giving 47 nearly enough credit for his efforts to “fight crime.” Here’s just a partial list of how he’s been helping America in this area:

• Pardoned the 1,500 criminals who violently attacked the United States Capitol, leading to the deaths of four police officers — and then fired the federal prosecutors who held them accountable.

• Hobbled the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, froze enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, disbanded the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, and backed off most federal lawsuits involving money laundering, crypto markets, and foreign corruption.

• Granted clemency to Lawrence Duran, a health care executive convicted of running a massive Medicare fraud and money laundering scheme.

• Commuted the 14-year sentence of Jason Galanis, who defrauded investors — including a Native American tribe and a teachers’ pension fund — of tens of millions of dollars.

• Pardoned Julie and Todd Chrisley, the reality TV stars convicted of bank fraud and tax evasion.

• Dropped charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who had been indicted on bribery charges.

• Ended investigations and lawsuits against many Big Tech corporations that had been facing federal scrutiny.

• Directed the Department of Justice to drop its criminal case against Boeing, despite the company’s role in two plane crashes that killed 346 people — even after Boeing had agreed to plead guilty.

• And let’s not forget: Trump himself was found guilty on all 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, related to payments made to Stormy Daniels before the 2016 presidential election.

For those looking for “both-sides-ism” or a historical rundown of what every president has done about crime — don’t hold your breath. This is about the here and now.

Forty-seven claims to be a genius at solving crime. And in a sick, twisted way, maybe he is. He simply redefines what “crime” is — then commutes, pardons, or ignores anything that benefits him and his allies. Problem solved.