WASHINGTON - President Trump propped up the "stop and frisk" policy in a speech to the International Association of Chief of Police Annual Convention Monday, calling it effective and meant for high-crime pockets of the country.

Directed attorney general's office to work with local authorities
Wants law enforcement to strongly consider stop and frisk
Views crime going down during his administration

The conference provides law enforcement officers a chance to focus on new crime fighting tools, with the association comprised of approximately 30,000 members representing law enforcement within 150 countries.

During his speech, Trump said that he has urged the city of Chicago to "strongly consider stop and frisk" because "the crime spree is a terrible blight on that city." He added that it worked effectively for Rudy Giuliani when he was mayor of New York City during the 1990s.

"It went from an unacceptably dangerous city to one of the safest cities in the country. And I think the safest, big city in the country. So it works, [has to] be properly applied, but stop and frisk works," the President said.

The stop and frisk tool entails police temporarily detaining someone and checking them for weapons or anything else illegal. Critics of the policy charge it often amounts to racial profiling with a disproportionate amount of minorities being stopped for the searches.

Trump also announced additional grant funding to help ease the drug crisis nationwide.

He hammered home the message that his administration is attempting to focus on law and order, especially when it comes to border security. Trump often portrays himself a champion of local law enforcement as opposed to Democrats, who he paints as weak on crime. His remarks come as many local police departments are trying to staff up.

"We are also making officer safety a top priority. We are making sure you have the equipment you need to do the job. That’s why we are allowing local police to access surplus military equipment," said Trump.

In the past decade, the San Antonio Police Department has dealt with some hurdles in hiring new officers. The Austin Police Department is attempting to fund an additional 130 new officers over the course of the next two years.