Mike Pence to Visit Oregon After Release of Damning FBI Crime Data Showing Uptick in Homicides

Former Vice President Mike Pence is heading to Oregon to give a speech on law and order following the release of a damning Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) crime report showing an uptick in homicides.

His speech at the Reagan Dinner 2021 event on Saturday will take place right outside of Portland and will be focused on enforcing the rule of law, support of law enforcement, and conservative efforts in Indiana, according to an Advancing American Freedom official.

Portland, Oregon, was the setting of many protests and riots after George Floyd’s death in 2020. Ultimately, the Portland City Council cowered to the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement, defunded its police by $16 million, and slashed several programs. By 2021, Portland Police Association Executive Director Daryl Turner warned that officer morale was “as bad as it’s ever been” as the Democrat-run city experienced a sharp rise in violent crime.

The Uniform Crime Report (UCR) released by the FBI on Monday shows that Oregon as a whole saw a nearly 20 percent increase in homicides in 2021, going from 91 in 2019 to 109 the following year. Portland saw an even greater increase. Between May 2020 and May of 2021, the city saw 91 homicides. Comparatively, between May 2019 and May 2020, the city only saw 29 homicides — a nearly 214 percent increase, according to data from the City of Portland.

Overall, the United States experienced a 30 percent increase in homicides, “the largest one-year increase since the federal government began compiling national figures in the 1960s,” the Washington Post reported.

Experts told the Post the rise in homicides could be blamed on “the pandemic,” though draconian government shutdowns which boosted unemployment and opportunities for abuse and domestic violence were not explicitly mentioned. They also warned of a “police legitimacy crisis,” which was reportedly “brought on by the videotaped killing last year of George Floyd by a police officer in Minneapolis.” The Defund the Police movement, BLM, and Antifa riots — which ended up being the most costly riots in U.S. history — and the disturbing anti-police rhetoric from the far-left about how “All Cops Are B*stards” (ACAB) were not mentioned in the report as a cause of overall animosity.

Pence’s speech will be the second in a series of policy-focused speeches following a July speech with the Heritage Foundation about U.S.- China relations. Law enforcement will be the larger focus of Pence’s trip to Oregon, according to the Advancing American Freedom official. While on his trip, the former vice president plans to speak with law enforcement officials in Hillsboro, Oregon. Pence has long consulted with law enforcement and faith leaders on the state of policing in the United States and traveled the country after the death of George Floyd to attend listening sessions about ways to improve the rule of law.

Law and order has been one of the top concerns for voters as crime continues to rise around the country. Specifically among Republicans, voters have largely expressed that they want to see more support for law enforcement officers rather than less, as some far-left Democrats continue to propose. Any candidate planning to run for president in the next election will most likely have to display a tough-on-crime attitude to sway GOP voters in their direction.

There has been much speculation about Pence running for president in 2024, though he has not confirmed whether he will run. If he does throw his hat in the ring, polling shows he could be met with a great deal of support from Republicans.

A Harvard Center for American Political Studies (CAPS) and Harris poll surveying 490 registered Republican voters on September 15 and 16, showed Donald Trump in a dominant position atop the GOP and Pence on the rebound atop a Trump-less field and in second place behind Trump in a field with the former president. 

“Trump drew 58 percent support when included, compared to Pence’s 13 percent and DeSantis’ 9 percent,” reported Florida Politics. “Sans Trump, Pence secured 32 percent support, while DeSantis had just 20 percent. Pence’s margin tripled.”