White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday used Birmingham as an example of a Democrat-run city in a red state whose crime rate can be blamed on “disastrous policies.”

During her daily briefing Tuesday, Leavitt was asked whether the White House would help red state governors with high crime rates in blue cities.

“Of course, there is crime in red states. But the crime in these cities is all in cities that are run by Democrats. If you look at the list of the top 20 high-crime cities in the United States every single one, with the exception of one in Louisiana, is run by a Democrat. And these Democrats have supported the same policies,” Leavitt said.

After mentioning Jackson, Mississippi, which Leavitt called a “de facto sanctuary city for criminals and illegal aliens” after the city eliminated cashless bail for all misdemeanor cases in 2019, Leavitt turned to the Magic City.

“Same thing – Birmingham, Alabama. A Democrat-run city in a red state. In 2017, the Birmingham City Council unanimously passed a resolution ‘committing to establish sanctuary policies,’” Leavitt said.

“So you actually look at the facts, these Democrat-run cities … they have all supported these disastrous policies which allow repeated career criminals back onto the streets to further commit acts of violence,” she said.

Rick Journey, a spokesman for Mayor Randall Woodfin, could not immediately be reached for comment.

Leavitt said President Donald Trump stands ready to assist red state governors.

“The president wants to work with anyone across this country who wants to end these horrible policies and to bring law and order to our streets, and I think that is proven by his tremendous cooperation with the mayor of Washington, D.C. … and just look at the results of that,” she said.

Leavitt’s attack on Birmingham came two weeks after California Gov. Gavin Newsom slammed Alabama as a “top 3 murder state.”

“Alabama’s top three murder states in America. Where’s the president of the United States? I thought he cared? These are the folks, these are his states that voted for him,” Newsom said.

Birmingham in 2024 broke its record for homicides set in 1933 with 151 violent deaths.

In 2025, however, the city has seen a decrease in violent crime.

As of Tuesday, there have been 57 homicides in Birmingham this year. One of those victims was shot in 2024 but died in 2025.