"The assassination of Charlie Kirk stunned first the audience at Utah Valley University, where he was shot while speaking Sept. 10, and then the country, as footage of his killing quickly spread. For many Americans, the conservative influencer's death crystallized a growing fear: The United States is experiencing more and more political violence. Kirk, 31, had the ear of both everyday Americans and the most powerful people in the United States."
"In 2025 alone, Minnesota Democratic state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband were fatally shot; an arsonist set fire to the Pennsylvania governor's residence with Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro and his family inside; an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer was shot and injured outside a detention facility in Texas; the New Mexico Republican Party headquarters was set on fire; and a shooter attacked the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters."
""In under a decade, violence has become a shockingly regular feature of American political life," University of Chicago political scientist Robert Pape wrote in "Foreign Affairs." "Support for political violence has gone mainstream. ... Political trends do not move in straight lines, and predicting the future can be a fool's errand. But it is safe to say that the United States has a rough road ahead.""
Charlie Kirk, a 31-year-old conservative influencer and founder of Turning Point USA, was shot and killed at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10 while speaking. His death intensified concerns about escalating political violence across the United States. Multiple incidents include fatal shootings, arson attacks on political offices and residences, an attack on the CDC headquarters, and injury to a federal officer. In 2024, two assassination attempts targeted Donald Trump, and Princeton's Bridging Divides Initiative recorded over 600 threats and harassment incidents against local officials, a 74% increase from 2022. Observers warn that political violence has become more regular and mainstream.
Read at Poynter
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