(NewsNation) — One day after former President Donald Trump allegedly insulted Milwaukee, Mayor Cavalier Johnson refuted those claims, instead complimenting the city he leads.
Trump reportedly referred to the Wisconsin city as “horrible” just over a month out from the city hosting the Republican National Convention.
Trump’s campaign has since called those reports “a total lie,” instead claiming that the former president was referring to the city’s crime rates as horrible. Rep. Glenn Grothman, R-Wis., backed that claim on NewsNation’s “The Hill” Thursday.
“Folks were saying that he didn’t say it, that he did say it, that it was related to crime, or it was related to election integrity — twisting themselves into pretzels trying to cover for Donald Trump,” Johnson said.
Whether or not Trump called his city “horrible,” Johnson, a Democrat, said it is a place seeing massive growth and declining crime rates after the pandemic.
“The fact of the matter is that every single indicator points to the opposite being true,” he said.
Recent data shows crime is on the decline. According to data from the Milwaukee Police Department, homicide, rape, aggravated assault and burglary are all down by at least 10% from last year.
“Milwaukee is a great city. It’s a splendid city. It’s a city that even the Republican National Committee who, by the way, have been great to work with, that they selected to host their convention in 2024,” he added.