SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — Mayor Daniel Lurie’s office and District Attorney Brooke Jenkins responded Saturday after Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff said President Donald Trump should send the National Guard to San Francisco.
The billionaire was recently quoted in The New York Times, saying that the federal troops could help reduce crime in the city. Benioff’s comments were made ahead of the Dreamforce 2025 convention, which is estimated to bring 50,000 people to downtown San Francisco next week.
“We don’t have enough cops, so if they can be cops, I’m all for it,” Benioff told The New York Times.
Lurie’s Press Secretary Charles Lutvak told KRON4 that The City’s crime is at its lowest in decades.
“Public safety is and has always been our administration’s number one priority,” Lutvak said in a statement. “Mayor Lurie launched his Rebuilding the Ranks plan in May to bring our police staffing up to the expert-recommended goal of 2,000 officers. And for the first time in nearly a decade, San Francisco is seeing net gains in both police officers and sheriff’s deputies. Crime is down nearly 30% citywide and at its lowest point in decades. We are moving in the right direction and will continue to prioritize safety and hiring while San Francisco law enforcement works every single day to keep our city safe.”
In his interview with The New York Times, Benioff said that he has to pay for 200 additional off-duty law enforcement officers to patrol downtown during the convention. On social media, he also praised Lurie and the City of San Francisco for working with him to hire more police.
“I’m deeply grateful to [Daniel Lurie] for his partnership and steadfast commitment to hiring more police, improving public safety, and building a stronger, more welcoming San Francisco,” he wrote on X.
However, the San Francisco native told The New York Times that the San Francisco Police Department needs another 1,000 officers on the force.
“You’ll see,” Benioff told The Times. “When you walk through San Francisco next week, there will be cops on every corner … that’s how it used to be.”
San Francisco DA Brooke Jenkins said that federal troops are not welcome in her city during an interview with KRON4’s Catherine Heenan.
“We still have work to do, yes, but what we don’t need is to invite President Trump’s chaos into our city,” said SFDA Jenkins. “I can tell you we’ve been working tirelessly to ensure that our streets are safer. Of course, if you saturate any area with law enforcement on every corner, you will have less crime. But what I’m seeing happen in the cities where President Trump has sent the military is not that we are having complete peace. It’s that we’re having chaos ensue; it’s that people are being harassed and racially profiled and that they are not following the law.”
San Francisco is seeing net gains in both police officers and sheriff’s deputies, according to city officials, with crime down nearly 30% citywide and at its lowest point in decades.
“I was certainly shocked. I really was,” added Jenkins. “I’ve never had a conversation with Mr. Benioff. He’s never requested to meet with me or to discuss anything related to public safety in San Francisco.”
