Growing Threats Against Public Officials, and Trump’s Diesel Deal With Putin

“They’re trying to intimidate me because they don’t like the way that, you know, I think politically.” That line, from a politician speaking to The New York Times, captures the new normal in American politics: threats against elected officials have become so pervasive that lawmakers are spending millions on private security, fortifying their homes, and in some cases quitting outright. The Times obtained court documents, police reports, voicemails, and social media posts that paint a grim picture. One voicemail: “I hope you die. I hope your family died. We need to feed your family tree into a wood chipper.” The targets range from local election officials to governors like Minnesota’s Tim Walz, who told the Times his daughter received a message saying, “Wait what I’ve got in store for you,” along with a photo in front of their house. “It’s persistent, it’s constant,” Walz said. This year, candidates for federal office have spent nearly five times as much on security as they did a decade ago. Some members of Congress have left office entirely, and both parties struggle to recruit new candidates, especially women. Former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who faced a wave of death threats after a dispute with President Trump over the Epstein investigation, told the Times she is “probably a lot safer since leaving office.”