In a recent interview, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff expressed concern over what he perceives as a pressing issue in San Francisco regarding police presence and public safety. He voiced strong support for President Donald Trump’s proposal to deploy National Guard troops to assist in maintaining law and order in cities with rising crime rates, specifically targeting Democrat-led areas.
Benioff highlighted the current shortfall of approximately 1,000 police officers in San Francisco, suggesting that utilizing National Guard troops could play a vital role in reducing crime rates. Despite this, recent statistics indicate that San Francisco has experienced a decline in violent crime, property crime, and homicides over the past year. In fact, outgoing Mayor London Breed noted earlier this year that the city’s crime rate had reached its lowest point since 2001.
The mayor’s office, along with the San Francisco Police Department, did not immediately respond to inquiries regarding Benioff’s statements. However, his remarks come amidst a backdrop of growing frustrations in the tech community regarding public safety issues. To bolster security during Salesforce’s highly-anticipated Dreamforce conference, which is set to attract around 50,000 attendees from over 140 countries, Benioff announced plans to hire hundreds of off-duty law enforcement officers to patrol the event.
“When you walk through San Francisco next week, there will be cops on every corner,” Benioff stated, emphasizing a vision of heightened security reminiscent of past years. He argued for the necessity of “re-funding” the police, despite evidence suggesting that the city has not actually defunded its police force. Moreover, San Francisco’s violent crime rates reportedly remain lower than those in several other major cities, including Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston, and New York.
Amid this debate, Benioff’s comments signal a broader trend of tech executives increasingly aligning themselves with the current administration. His relationship with Trump has seemingly deepened; he recently attended a state dinner hosted by King Charles in which he expressed gratitude to the president for his policies.
As technology leaders navigate the complexities of public perception and safety in urban environments, Benioff’s perspective reflects a significant intersection of business interests and political advocacy. Notably, this trend has been echoed among other tech titans, fostering an atmosphere of collaboration—or at least cordiality—between the tech sector and the Trump administration as they grapple with the implications of crime and public safety in major urban areas.
