President Joe Biden will meet with a handful of mayors and activists to discuss rising violent crime rates on Wednesday, but only one police officer.
Chief Murphy J. Paul, Jr. of Baton Rouge, Louisiana will appear with Biden, the only law enforcement officer on the guestlist released by the White House.
Under Murphy’s watch, there has been a roughly 35 percent increase of homicides from this time last year, up from an already record high of killings in 2020, according to The Advocate.
The meeting with Biden at the White House will be closed to the press.
Mayor Steve Allender of Rapid City, South Dakota and Mayor Brandon Scott, Baltimore, Maryland will also appear with Biden.
Community activists attending the meeting include Founder and CEO of Advance Peace DeVone Boggan and Eddie Bocanegra, the Senior Director at READI Chicago.
Biden’s meeting offers a sharp contrast between former President Donald Trump, who routinely met with numerous law enforcement officials and offered his full support.
Biden will blame guns for the rise in homicides with plans to announce stronger enforcement measures after the meeting to reduce guns in America’s major cities.
“We believe that a central driver of violence is gun violence and is the use of guns,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said during the daily briefing on Monday.