Chicago pastor Corey Brooks says Dems are ‘outright lying’ about crime, calls on Trump to send National Guard

A Chicago pastor is pushing back against claims that the city’s crime crisis is improving, calling on President Donald Trump to step in before the violence escalates.

Pastor Corey Brooks, who leads Project H.O.O.D., a violence prevention group on the city’s South Side, said Wednesday the community has already seen 254 deaths in 233 days, with 80% of those victims being Black boys.

Updated figures from the city’s official crime dashboard now show 266 homicides this year, averaging more than one a day.

“For anyone in our community to say that things are getting better and that people are safe, that is an outright lie,” Brooks told “Fox & Friends.”

The pastor is urging Trump to deploy the National Guard to Chicago, pointing to the administration’s recent crime crackdown in Washington, D.C. The National Guard’s presence in the capital coincided with a 12-day stretch of no homicides, a streak that ended Tuesday.

Brooks argues that Illinois leaders are blocking similar action in Chicago for political purposes.

“One of the number-one priorities of government is to make sure that the citizens of America stay safe. And that should be the number-one priority of the governor and the mayor, but it’s not,” he said.

“The only thing that they’re really concerned [with] when it comes to Black lives that matter, is Black lives matter that vote.”

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, both Democrats, have both rejected Trump’s offer of federal intervention.

“We are being targeted because of what and who we represent,” Johnson said during a press conference Monday.

Pritzker warned the Trump administration, saying: “Mr. President, do not come to Chicago.”

Trump, however, said Tuesday he is prepared to intervene.

“I’m willing to go to Chicago,” said Trump, who argued local leaders refuse to see the bigger picture. “Which is a big trouble, but we have a governor that refuses to admit he has problems.”

Brooks insists the violence is personal to his community.

“There’s no doubt about it that crime is still a serious problem in the city of Chicago,” he said.

“We still have mothers who are burying young boys, and their sons are dying prematurely. That is a serious issue. And for individuals to make us try to feel as if we’re witnessing things getting better, that’s not right.”

Brooks acknowledged that sending in the National Guard would only be a temporary fix but said it could provide a much-needed break in the cycle of violence.

“I realize that the National Guard is a temporary fix, but it will calm things down,” Brooks said. “It’s up to organizations like ours to continue to do the solutions and bring the help that we need.”

He added that silence is no longer an option.

“We have to speak out. We have to say something. We have let the world know that this is an issue in Chicago,” he said. “And we can’t let the mayor nor the governor dictate how that is said.”