Trump Is Right About Homelessness

President Donald Trump’s return to Washington, DC took an unexpected turn when he spent more than ten minutes discussing how homelessness is ruining American cities. The speech, delivered at the America First Policy Institute’s summit, described how homeless tent cities and associated increases in crime are destroying communities across the country.

Twitter predictably erupted in outrage at his policy prescriptions to clean up city streets and require the homeless to move to shelters and get help. But Trump is right. As he stated, “Some people say that’s horrible. No, what’s horrible is what’s happening now.” Thankfully, state leaders across the country are taking on this growing problem and rejecting failed local policies.

As Trump said, homelessness is a public safety issue. A Cicero Institute poll found that seven in ten Georgia voters think that homeless camps threaten public safety. This concern is one reason why an even higher percentage of voters want the state legislature to ban street camping. Given that three-quarters of the homeless living on the streets suffer from serious mental illness, three-quarters are addicted to drugs or alcohol, and the majority have both afflictions, it is cruel to allow these individuals to suffer and most likely die on the streets.

Read the full commentary in Forbes.