Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee isn’t mincing words about President Donald Trump’s latest remarks on her city. After Trump floated the idea of federalizing Oakland’s police department and sending in National Guard troops, Lee called the move “fearmongering” and warned it was both unconstitutional and unnecessary.
“The truth is, our crime rate is coming down,” Lee told NewsNation this week. “Do we have more work to do? Absolutely, yes. But this doesn’t make any sense. He’s fearmongering and trying to distract from his difficulties. Militarizing a city is unconstitutional.”
Lee pointed to the numbers. According to the Oakland Police Department, overall crime has dropped 29 percent this year. Homicides are down 24 percent, while robberies and burglaries have fallen 46 percent. The mayor credited that progress to coordinated violence prevention programs, which she says the Trump administration has simultaneously tried to strip of federal funding.
“We hope that he does what’s right,” Lee said, “and that’s partnering with us and making sure that we stop disinvesting in health care, housing, jobs, and violence prevention efforts—and instead invest in these efforts.”
Trump’s comments happened a week after he federalized the D.C. police department and ordered National Guard troops to patrol the nation’s capital. Cities across the country, especially those with large Black and Latino populations, were rattled by the decision. Oakland, with its long history of grassroots organizing and clashes with federal authorities, is particularly sensitive to the prospect.
Lee said her administration has already begun consulting attorneys in case the president attempts to override local control. “We take him seriously,” she said. “But everyone in Oakland understands that this is a distraction. He has trashed our city the way he has trashed others, without understanding what’s happening on the ground.”
Lee also suggested that Trump’s focus on Oakland and other cities led by Black mayors was not accidental. “The facts speak for themselves,” she said, noting the pattern of federal threats against predominantly Black and brown communities. “Occupation and militarizing cities with Black and brown populations could be provocative—it raises fear, and that permeates the entire city.”
For Lee, the bigger concern is what federal intervention would mean for Oakland’s immigrant communities, many of whom already fear the presence of ICE. “Our immigrant communities are terrified,” she said. “We need investment, not intimidation.”
Despite political divisions in Oakland, Lee said Trump’s threats have had one unintended consequence: unity. “This is an unfortunate way to unify the city,” she said. “But the majority of people here understand that this is just wrong.”
