Donald Trump’s federal takeover of Washington, DC’s police force — which looks like something between an authoritarian power grab and an empty stunt — doesn’t look like a political winner at first glance.

A poll from YouGov last week showed little support for Trump’s move; 34 percent of respondents approved of the idea, and 47 percent disapproved.

Yet the pushback from Democrats — which often focused on pointing out that DC crime was trending downward, or arguing it wasn’t such a serious problem — shows why the larger crime issue remains perilous for them, and advantageous for Trump.

Though Trump is unpopular, crime remains one of his strongest issues, and one of the Democratic Party’s worst.

That sticks in Democrats’ craw. Trump’s recitation of DC crime statistics was filled with blatant misrepresentations. Furthermore, Trump himself was........

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