Story highlights Trump said "more than 4,000 were shot last year alone" in Chicago

"We've allowed too many young lives to be claimed," Trump said

Washington (CNN) President Donald Trump on Wednesday painted a dark picture of rising crime in American cities on Wednesday. But unlike a day earlier when he falsely claimed a record-high murder rate, Trump stuck to the facts.

The overall murder rate in the US's 30-largest cities in 2016 climbed "by double digits," he said, adding that the violent crime rate has ticked up in "many of our big cities."

The President added that "more than 4,000 were shot last year alone" in Chicago.

"We've allowed too many young lives to be claimed, and you see that, you see that all over," Trump said in his speech Wednesday before a gathering of major city police chiefs as he made the case for tougher law enforcement policies.