Actor James Woods warns ‘America’s streets will run with blood’ because of Democrats

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CHICAGO, IL – Actor James Woods took issue with a meeting between Democratic Mayor Lori Lightfoot and President Biden following the deadliest weekend in Chicago this year, saying “as long as Democrats continue to defund the police, America’s streets will run with blood.”

The President met with Mayor Lightfoot on Wednesday at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport on his way to an event in McHenry County, Illinois.

The meeting followed the Fourth of July weekend in Chicago, where more than 100 people were shot and 19 killed during the city’s most violent weekend of 2021.

The President told the Mayor he planned to send a “strike force” to help combat violence in the city. Lightfoot commented:

“My hope and my expectation is that they’re going to be coming relatively soon. I’ve made no secret of the fact that this is a matter of incredible urgency and I think the president’s plan is to make a difference in localities like Chicago this summer.”

Woods, known for his work in various film, stage, television, and theater, tweeted that Democratic support for defunding the police would have dire consequences:

“Criminals will always have guns and will always use them with little regard for the lives of innocents.

“The only way to end crime is to wage war on gangs in America. As long as Democrats continue to defund the police, America’s streets will run with blood.”

Woods was hitting back at calls from Democratic politicians and activists who have been calling for police departments to have their budgets reduced or eliminated. Several major blue cities have taken the step of defunding their police, and crime has surged in those locations.

Chicago has seen unprecedented violence under Mayor Lightfoot’s leadership. “Chi-Town” has seen more than 2,021 shooting victims this year, more than 164 more than last year, according to a database set up by the Chicago Tribune to track the numbers.

The gun violence surge spurred on mainstream media’s undue vilification of police officers, Democratic calls for defunding, and groups like Black Lives Matter spreading false propaganda about law enforcement across the country.

According to the Gun Violence Archive, there have been 23,085 gun-related deaths across the United States in 2021.

There have been a staggering 342 mass shootings and 16 mass murders this year.

The children have not been spared from the violence. 163 children have been killed by gun violence in 2021, and 405 have been injured.

Gun violence and crime incidents are collected/validated from 7,500 sources daily by the Gun Violence Archive. The data in this story was valid as of July 7, 2021.

President Biden’s meeting with Lightfoot and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker came just hours after two federal agents and a Chicago police officer were shot early Wednesday in the city’s South Side.

Following the meeting, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki issued a statement:

“During a greet with Mayor Lightfoot on the airport tarmac, President Biden expressed his personal support for the two ATF officials and the Chicago police officer who were shot earlier today.

“He reiterated his commitment to working with the Mayor and leaders in Chicago in the fight against gun violence and conveyed that the Department of Justice would soon be in touch about the strike force announced just a few weeks ago that will be working with cities like Chicago.”

Democrats have tried to redirect blame for the defund movement as campaign season looms for midterm elections. National polling suggests that rising crime is the top issue on the minds of voters.

In June, Biden aide Cedric Richmond told Fox News Sunday that congressional Republicans who voted against a $350 billion plan to aid cities resulted in defunding the police:

“Let’s talk about who defunded the police, when we were in Congress last year trying to pass a rescue plan, I mean an emergency relief plan for cities that were cash strapped and laying off police and firefighters, it was Republicans who objected to it.”

In a briefing last week, Psaki said at a press briefing that “some might say that the other party was for defunding the police…” Despite the attempt to reflect, statistics show otherwise.

Oakland, California, a city run by Democrats for years, cut the police budget by $18 million while crime is raging through the city. Shootings in Oakland have increased by 70 percent, homicides by 90 percent and carjackings by 88 percent. Burglaries, rapes, and other crimes have also significantly increased.

Oakland Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong said:

“So, we see clearly that crime is out of control in the city of Oakland and our response was for less police resources. Without the resources, it makes it challenging to make Oakland safe, and more families find themselves dealing with trauma.”

Democrat leaders in cities across the country, including Los Angeles, Atlanta, Minneapolis, Baltimore, and New York, cut or withheld tens of millions of dollars in funds from police departments, resulting in layoffs and a spike in officers leaving the force.

Crime rates are now soaring across the U.S., 37 cities saw an 18 percent rise in murders in the first three months of 2021, including a jump of 58 percent in Atlanta and more than 500 percent in Portland.

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Two Chicago police officers shot while breaking up crowd following 4th of July gathering

July 5, 2021

 

CHICAGO, IL – Two Chicago police officers were shot and wounded on the city’s west side early Monday while trying to break up a crowd following Fourth of July gatherings, authorities said.

Superintendent David Brown said the officers were attempting to disperse a crowd that was setting off fireworks in the 100 block of North Long Avenue in the Austin neighborhood around 1:45 when gunfire erupted.

Police said a female commander and a male sergeant were on patrol when police said they tried to disperse a large crowd shooting fireworks. The officers heard gunshots and felt pain. Neither officer saw the shooter or shooters.

The commander was struck in the foot and the sergeant was shot in the leg. Both officers were transported to Stroger Hospital for treatment. The officers were listed in good condition.

Superintendent Brown was unsure if the shots were random or targeted:

“As you know, there’s been a lot of large crowd gatherings tonight, a lot of celebratory fireworks going off, kind of spontaneous.

“They were dispersing a crowd when they heard shots and felt pain. Not sure if they targeted or whether this was people celebrating shooting in the air, shooting indiscriminately.”

In a social media post later in the morning, Superintendent Brown said of the officers:

“Thankfully, they will be all right.”

A witness who spoke to ABC 7 News described what they saw:

“They (the officers) were standing by one car, and there was a loud pop, and everyone started running and the police officer fell to the ground… And then the other police officer had … and everyone was screaming… someone was screaming ‘they shot the police officer, they shot the police officer.”

Investigators are searching for witnesses and any video that may have captured the shooting. Anyone with information is asked to contact their local police.

The shooting about 1:45 a.m. on the city’s West Side happened less than an hour after a drive-by shooting in Washington Park on the city’s Southside left two people dead and four others wounded.

Between Friday night and Monday morning, a total of 12 people have been killed by gun violence in the city.  At least 40 more people were wounded in shootings in Chicago during the same time period. Final totals for the weekend will not be released until Tuesday because of the holiday weekend.

Chicago has suffered a spike in gun violence this year and 33 Chicago police officers have been either shot or shot at since January 1.  Last year at this time, 22 officers were shot or shot at.

Another concerning figure shows that mass shootings are becoming an epidemic in the “Windy City”. In the Washington Park shooting, police said two men died, a 12-year-old girl was in critical condition, a 13-year-old boy was in stable condition and a woman was in good condition.

Another woman was treated for a grazing bullet wound at the scene.

There have been no arrests in the mass shooting.

 

 

 

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About The Author

Scott A. Davis is a 28-year veteran of law enforcement. He served as a Police Sergeant and as a Detective in Pennsylvania. Scott retired from law enforcement in 2020. Prior to his law enforcement career, Scott was an award-winning journalist and recipient of two Keystone Press Awards.

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