As President Joe Biden frets over what his legacy will be in the waning days of his presidency, many New Yorkers might have an answer for him: the surge in violent crime not just in The Big Apple but all over the nation during his time in the White House. George Soros-funded soft-on-crime district attorneys like New York's Alvin Bragg have made daily life more dangerous than at any other time in recent memory. One of those much more dangerous places is the New York subway. But wait a minute, New Yorkers, it's really not what you think.

The absolute galling audacity spewed today by @MTA Chair&CEO Janno Lieber that subway crime is “in people’s heads”.. is he for real? Last week, multiple stabbing & a woman was set on fire! When was the last time this pompous a$$ rode public transportation! HE MUST STEP DOWN! pic.twitter.com/ZujsIPY0id

— Concetta🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@concetta8631) January 6, 2025

Janno Lieber is the CEO of New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). On Monday, during an interview with Bloomberg, he appeared to dismiss the concerns about an increase in violent crimes plaguing the subway by not only those who depend on it but also those who may use it more now to avoid the newly instituted "congestion tax" by not driving, and declared the problem all "in peoples' heads." 

Lieber stated, “Some of these high-profile incidents, you know, terrible attacks have gotten in people’s heads and made the whole system feel unsafe." He added, “The overall stats are positive.” Some of those "high profile" cases Lieber mentioned included the death of Debrina Kawam, who was set on fire by an illegal immigrant from Guatemala, who sat nearby and watched Kawam burn to death, a man being pushed into the path of an oncoming subway train on New Year's Eve, who is expected to survive, and a 71-year-old woman on her way to church New Year's Day, who was attacked by a group of teen girls.

READ MORE: COURAGE: 71-Year-Old New York Woman Fights Off Subway Attack From Four Teen Assailants

Lieber is technically right; according to NYPD statistics, overall crime was down in 2024 by around three percent compared to 2024. But he is leaving out the part that applies to public transportation. Those statistics are not as rosy. From 2019 to 2024, felony assaults on the subway and mass transit were up 65 percent, with 374 assaults reported in 2019, and 579 reported in 2024. 

Janno Lieber is not the only one who is trying to tell New Yorkers not to believe their lyin' eyes. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul was also touting the safety of the New York City subway system by posting on X how, in March of 2024, she had deployed New York National Guard troops to assist law enforcement with cracking down on crime in the subway. However, another way to say that is that crime was so bad in the subway she had to deploy the National Guard. Hours after that X post, Debrina Kawam was set on fire. 

The rising crime in New York City's subways is emblematic of Governor Kathy Hochul's ineffectiveness in office. Keeping New Yorkers safe is the most basic responsibility of a Governor, and she's failing even in that regard. pic.twitter.com/8JCiL1b8ig

— Congressman Mike Lawler (@RepMikeLawler) January 2, 2025

Someone who is calling out the gaslighting by Lieber and Hochul of New Yorkers is Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa. After Kawam's murder, Sliwa announced that he was beefing up Guardian Angel patrols, and they would be returning to the subway system. Sliwa compared current conditions in the subway to those the year the group was founded in 1979, saying,

“We’re going to have to increase our numbers, increase the training and increase our presence as we did back in 1979. We went from 13 to 1,000 [members] back then within a period of a year. Because the need was there. The need is here now once again. We’re going to step up. We’re going to make sure we have a visual presence just like we had in the ’70s, 80’s and ’90s. We’re covering the actual trains from front to back, walking through the trains and making sure that everything is okay. We’re doing this constantly now. Starting today. that’s going to be our complete focus because the subways are out of control.” 

One subway rider undoubtedly summed up the feelings of the majority of his fellow passengers, saying:

"People burned to death, shoved under a train while others have their lives threatened and have to watch riders use the train as a toilet is a figment of the imagination. That's an interesting line of BS. How do the riders feel about this."

Note to Janno Lieber: If you are not fooling New Yorkers, you aren't fooling anyone.

ALSO READ: 'Not Reality': Nate Silver Hears About It After Gaslighting Over NYC's Crime Problems

Today's cover: New Yorkers on Monday embraced the Guardian Angels and founder Curtis Sliwa as the anti-crime crusaders resumed patrols of the troubled city subway system for the first time since 2020. https://t.co/l6l9F5pFvg pic.twitter.com/T7KLVmsIAe

— New York Post (@nypost) December 31, 2024