Andrew Solender at Axios:
Threats against members of Congress skyrocketed in 2024, marking a return to levels not seen since the year after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, according to new Capitol Police data.
Why it matters: The data suggests that the chaotic events of 2024 — punctuated by two assassination attempts against President Trump — are emblematic of a volatile period in American politics.
- After dipping down considerably between 2021 and 2022, Capitol Police threat assessment cases have since risen at an accelerating pace.
- The level of threats has risen drastically since the start of Trump’s first term in 2017.
By the numbers: The Capitol Police said in a press release on Monday that their Threat Assessment Section opened 9,474 investigations into threats against members of Congress, their families and staffers.That is up from just over 8,000 in 2023 and 7,500 in 2022. It’s just short of the 9,625 in 2021 — the year following the Jan. 6 attack — which was the most since the start of the first Trump administration.