Quote · The Charlie Kirk Show
Thoughtcrime Flashback: The Fourth of July 2025
Where this was said
New York's Crime History and the Case Against a Death Spiral
At 14:47 · chapter starts 14:10
Blake puts New York's worst-ever crime in stark numerical terms: roughly 2,000 murders in 1991, more than double Chicago's worst figures. [1] — Blake "New York City broke 2,000 murders in a single year around 1991 — more than double Chicago's worst figures. The city clawed back from that d…" 14:05 Charlie uses Taxi Driver's Times Square as a cultural marker for just how bad it got. The panel then debates whether New York can go back there — Charlie cites London's gradual decline as a warning, but Blake argues New York's institutional resilience is sui generis. The Orthodox Jewish community, entrenched financial institutions, and the structural reality of five-borough politics all serve as ballast. You can make New York worse on the margins; you probably can't recreate the '70s death spiral. Then Charlie quizzes the panel on borough voter share, surprising everyone with the data: Brooklyn at 30%, Queens second, Manhattan only 19%.
At its worst (around 1990-1991), New York City recorded approximately 2,000 murders in a single year — more than double Chicago's worst figures.
Chicago at its worst hit roughly 800 murders in a year during the peak Floyd-era crime surge, compared to New York's 2,000.
Manhattan looms large in the cultural imagination but is only 19% of NYC voters. Brooklyn is 30%, the Bronx 15%, and Staten Island — the MAGA colony — just 6%. The outer boroughs decide New York, and their increasingly immigrant, diverse composition makes Mamdani's coalition coherent.
Brooklyn is the most populous borough in New York City, accounting for roughly 30% of the city's voters.
Manhattan, despite its outsized cultural prominence, accounts for only 19% of New York City voters.
The Bronx accounts for 15% of New York City's total voter share, according to figures cited by Charlie Kirk.
Staten Island makes up only 6% of New York City voters and was described by Charlie Kirk as the 'MAGA colony' of the city.
