Fox Business host Stuart Varney argued Friday that New York and some other major U.S. cities “will set back America’s cities for years” as a result of “mob rule, combined with the virus shutdown” in a fiery monologue on Friday morning.
“That is Sixth Avenue, Midtown Manhattan. Hardly any traffic. Hardly any people,” Varney said during his “My Take” segment. “This is because of the virus and it’s because of mob rule.”
“The police are beaten in the streets without consequence,” he later continued. “The man who beat a top police official was released without bail. Thousands of criminals have been released from the prisons … I don’t want to beat about the bush on this: mob rule, combined with the virus shutdown, will set back America’s cities for years.”
The debate over the police in New York City has spiraled in recent weeks amid a rise in shootings.
The NYPD reported that at least 44 people were shot between Monday and early Thursday morning in New York City. Overall, shootings are up 53 percent in the first six months of this year when compared with 2019, according to the NYPD.
At the same time, arrests have fallen, leading some in New York to accuse the police of a work slowdown.
NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea told CNN on Thursday that the release of people from Rikers Island under a new bail law is at least partly to blame for the rise in shootings. He also argued the coronavirus crisis has made things more difficult for police, as has an anti-police sentiment driven by protests over the police killing in Minneapolis of George Floyd.
Shea called it a “toxic environment” for police.
Several members of the New York Police Department have been attacked by protesters in recent days, including the city’s top uniformed police officer, two lieutenants and a sergeant in two separate incidents on the Brooklyn Bridge on Wednesday.
Tensions also have been building over accusations of police attacking protesters and of police vehicles being driven into demonstrators.
Unrest and violence also continues to plague other cities including Chicago, Atlanta, Minneapolis and Los Angeles.
Varney’s remarks were also pointed at presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, and in some cases echoed arguments the Trump campaign has sought to make against its opponent in November, who is well ahead in polls.
“Tough to get America going again if the mob and the virus hold back our cities,” Varney later concluded. “Apart from which, aren’t you fed up with the dismal performance of big-city mayors and the virtual silence of Joe Biden?”
Trump has sought to tie himself to police amid the debate over reforming departments across the country.