Only in America tonight, about 24 hours after it happened, authorities are trying to better understand the motives of an alleged assailant. The suspect, who darted through a security checkpoint and tried, in words attributed to him by investigators, to become a “federal assassin and kill Trump administration officials.”
But in a room full of politicians, some already victims of violence, and journalists who have covered violence for years, it wasn’t hard to immediately understand the context or the stakes. It has become undeniable in America today that too many people believe violence is a legitimate way to achieve their political goals.
In 2025, the US Capitol Police investigated more than 14,000 threats to politicians. Between then and now, a number of our government officials and their families have relocated, leaving their homes to live on military bases for the added security.
Over the next few days, you’ll hear a lot about lowering the temperature of the things we say in real life and online, and that’s the right advice. We can only hope that this time, as a country, we take it.
