In the News: Staffer Safety in the Wake of Recent Attacks
“Recent attacks put staffers on edge as authorities look for answers”
Roll Call
Justin Papp
May 31, 2023
Excerpts from the story:
The blood on the rug and walls of Rep. Gerald E. Connolly’s Fairfax, Va., office can be cleaned. The shattered glass can be repaired.
But the emotional toll of the recent assault on two staffers by a bat-wielding constituent is far greater than the temporary damage to the office.
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The attack comes amid a recent string of highly publicized incidents that have left staff on edge and are raising questions about security, especially away from Washington.
“Staffers are hurting right now,” said Michael Suchecki, a spokesperson for the Congressional Progressive Staff Association, who works in the office of Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass. “We pour our hearts into serving our communities and our country, but we’ve been shaken by the recent uptick in threats of violence, the online doxing of employees and a brutal attack on office staff.”
The attack at Connolly’s office came less than two months after a staffer for Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., was stabbed repeatedly while walking with a friend on H Street Northeast in Washington.
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Last week, Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., allegedly received a death threat from a former football player for the San Francisco 49ers via social media, which he attributed to the climate created by former President Donald Trump.
“Goodness will win. But MAGA Nation and the evil it inspires is working hard to take us to a dark place,” Swalwell tweeted May 18.
Suchecki, who said he received death threats while working as an intern in Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar’s office, also blamed Republicans for excusing the “violence of white supremacists and January 6th insurrectionists.” The Capitol Police, however, said in January that members from both parties receive similar numbers of threats.
Though the attacker at Connolly’s office appeared to be struggling with mental health and was not politically motivated, according to Connolly, the event still serves as a reminder that there are benefits to toning down partisan rhetoric. In the wake of the attack, he said he saw politics evaporate. Colleagues from across the political spectrum reached out to express their support.