yes, trump is making the country more violent

Under the Trump administration, life has gotten uglier and crueler. And according to a new study, that’s not just a matter of opinion.

Political scientists at the University of North Texas are reporting to The Washington Post that there has been a 226 percent increase in hate crimes since the beginning of the Trump administrations. According to professors and a Ph.D. candidate who worked on the study, the scientists found that statements Trump made during his 2016 campaign “may encourage hate crimes.

The study itself measured the correlation between countries that host campaign stops and hate crime rare in the months following Trump’s visit. They then used the Anti-Defamation League’s map to measure cases of violence for consistency. “We examined this question, given that so many politicians and pundits accuse Trump of emboldening white nationalists,” the analysts report.

“In fact, this charge is frequently used as a political tool to dismiss concerns about hate crimes,” the analysis said. “Research shows it is far more likely that hate crime statistics are considerably lower because of underreporting.”