Officials Investigate More Threats of Violence Against U.S. Politicians
Officials in at least three states said on Monday that they were investigating or prosecuting people for making threats against politicians, a day after the police in Minnesota arrested and charged a man over the assassination of a state lawmaker.
In Texas, the authorities said that an armed man who threatened to harm lawmakers at the State Capitol had been detained. In Georgia, a man was arraigned after prosecutors said he threatened sexual violence against two United States senators. And in Virginia, a former Coast Guard officer was arrested and accused of making threats against President Trump online.
Threats and violence against local, state and federal officials in the United States have become part of America's political landscape.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, a Democrat, was the target of a kidnapping plot in 2020, and a man bludgeoned the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in 2022. President Trump was the target of two assassination attempts during his second presidential campaign. And in April, the home of Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, was set on fire as he and his family slept inside.
The Department of Homeland Security's annual assessment of threats to the United States said last year that politically motivated violence was among its top concerns for 2025. The number of concerning statements and direct threats against members of Congress alone more than doubled from 2017 to 2024, according to an investigation by the United States Capitol Police.
The attacks in Minnesota on Saturday killed State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, and wounded another state lawmaker and his wife. The shootings led to a manhunt for the suspect, who was captured late Sunday and charged with murder. The police said he had a list of other potential targets, including politicians in several states. The two lawmakers were Democrats.
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