President Donald Trump continued to call out Chicago's violence during a rally in Ohio Tuesday, weeks after federal authorities the president had promised to send arrived in the city.
Speaking to a crowd of supporters, Trump promised to "make America safe again."
He questioned, however, "what the hell is going on in Chicago."
"This month in Chicago there have been more than two homicide victims per day," he stated.
The comments come weeks after Trump's administration announced the creation of a "Chicago Gun Strike Force."
U.S Attorney General Jeff Sessions said late last month that 20 more permanent ATF agents were sent to the city along with federal prosecutors with the purpose of "prioritizing prosecutions to reduce gun violence, and working with our law enforcement partners to stop the lawlessness.”
The move followed an earlier promise Trump made in January, when he tweeted that he would “send in the Feds!” to help curb the rising number of shootings in Chicago.
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Police reported at the end of June that shootings were down by 14 percent compared to the first six months of 2016.
In the days following the announcement, the city went on to record a particularly violent Fourth of July holiday weekend, with more than 100 people shot over the four-day weekend.
Last year, 66 people were shot, four of them fatally, over the long holiday weekend. However, Fourth of July fell on a Monday that year, making the weekend only three days long.
According to Chicago police data, there have been more than 1,600 shooting incidents as of Sunday. Though police statistics don't show how many people have been shot in those incidents, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Monday more than 2,075 people have been shot since the start of the year.
At least six people were killed and dozens of others wounded in gun violence across the city over the last weekend alone.
Chicago police reported on Monday they have removed more than 5,000 guns this year of Chicago streets. The department has also rolled out several initiatives this year, including a high-tech ballistics van that was sent as part of the partnership with the ATF.
