WASHINGTON — FBI Director Kash Patel joined President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Wednesday to discuss the administration’s latest national crime statistics.

“These are the best numbers for fighting crime in U.S. history, and it’s only seven months in,” Trump said.

Patel touted new figures showing progress in reducing crime in major U.S. cities.

From June to September, he said, 8,700 violent criminals were arrested and 2,200 firearms were seized. He also noted gang-related arrests are up by more than 200%.

“This number is historic by every metric,” Patel said.

The administration’s decision to federalize the National Guard, however, has faced pushback in several Democratic-led cities. Efforts to deploy units in Chicago and Portland have been delayed amid court rulings and lawsuits.

On Wednesday, a U.S. district judge extended a temporary restraining order blocking the deployment to Oregon for another two weeks.

“We are going to save all of our cities, and we will make them crime-free,” Trump said.

Trump, FBI director tout record crime drop as National Guard deployments face legal pushback

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Ben Kennedy