'The View' hosts spar over crime: 'New York City is one of the safest cities in the country'

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Sunny Hostin says New York City is 'one of the safest cities in the country'

'The View' host Sunny Hostin said Wednesday that New York City is one of the 'safest cities in the country.'

The hosts of "The View" went back and forth over crime across the U.S. during Wednesday's episode and Sunny Hostin argued that New York City is "one of the safest cities in the country." 

"New York is one of the safest cities in the country. It has a $5 billion budget," Hostin said after arguing that the Republican plan to deal with crime was "fearmongering." 

Co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin asked if she felt safe in New York and added, "I don't feel safe in New York." 

"You're very young," co-host Joy Behar said to Farah Griffin. "You know, I have been around, and there were worse crime rates in the ’80s and the ’70s." 

Sunny Hostin, left, and Alyssa Farah Griffin sparred over crime during "The View" on Wednesday. (Screenshot/ABC/TheView)

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Behar added that she was afraid to leave her house, and Farah Griffin said, "We shouldn't settle for that."

"I’m not settling for it, but don’t exaggerate the situation," Behar said. 

Co-host Sara Haines said Farah Griffin was making some "good points." 

"My perception tends to rule the day on crime, and I've said over and over right now, for the first time in New York City, last couple of years, I have felt less safe than I have before that, but then you look at statistics, and for me statistics is what rules the day, that’s how I operate. Right now there is an issue with our statistics, which is why our 2021/2022 rates are off nationwide because the FBI changed how to register the crimes, how to book them, how to process them," she said. 

From left, "The View" hosts Whoopi Goldberg, Sara Haines, Joy Behar, Sunny Hostin and Alyssa Farah Griffin. (Screenshot/ABC/TheView)

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Hostin said that New York might be underreporting crimes in order to keep their budget. 

"New York is probably not reporting all of their crime statistics because they want to keep that $5 billion budget. Why not divert some of those funds then to mental health, to homelessness?" she said. 

The hosts also discussed the debate between New York's Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul and her Republican challenger, Congressman Lee Zeldin, which focused a lot on crime in the Empire State.

Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., and incumbent Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul clashed in a primetime debate on Tuesday. (Screenshot/Spectrum News)

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"We need to make our streets safe again. I'm running to take back our streets, and to support, unapologetically, our men and women in law enforcement," Zeldin said during the debate in response to a question about crime policy.

Hochul said Zeldin was trying to make New Yorkers "scared" with regard to crime and argued her policies were "making a difference."