Day: September 17, 2025

The White House and House Republicans are seeking nearly $90 million in funding to protect Supreme Court justices and members of Congress in the wake of the assassination of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk.

The killing of the 31-year-old Kirk at a public speaking event last week has stoked safety concerns for both Democrats and Republicans and prompted fears of a spiral of political violence in the country.

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The White House requested $58 million from Congress to approve security for the executive and judicial branches, referencing a surge of threats against public officials following Kirk’s shooting. Meanwhile, House GOP leaders on Wednesday added $30 million in security measures to their proposed budget to fund the federal government through mid-November.

Read More: The Killing of Charlie Kirk and the Political Violence Haunting America

The White House said the extra money would go to the U.S. Marshals Service to fund increased security costs for protecting Supreme Court justices and executive officials. It said the funding “is necessary due to increased threats against public officials,” and would remain available through September 2027, if approved. 

The proposed $30 million for Congress would be funneled to security for both members of the House and Senate and is also included in a stopgap, seven-week spending bill that is facing pushback from Democrats.

“The tragedy has also initiated a number of uncomfortable but necessary conversations about important issues like the safety and security of our members,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday, in reference to Kirk’s death.

Some high-ranking officials have postponed or cancelled events out of fear of political attacks following last week’s shooting.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a progressive Democrat who has faced death threats in the past, told reporters last week she would reschedule a rally in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Read More: Trump Called for a Crackdown on the ‘Radical Left.’ But Right Wing Extremists Are Responsible for More Political Violence

Rep. Nancy Mace, who is running for governor in South Carolina, said she was cancelling outdoor and public events for the foreseeable future.

“I will have a firearm on my person all the time, and I will have security,” Mace said to the media outside the Capitol.

Johnson recently said that Capitol Police have tracked close to 14,000 threats to federal officials this year, which is up from the roughly 9,000 instances that were reported in 2024.

“There are many security measures in place for members of Congress, at their homes, at their offices and when they go about,” Johnson said to reporters. “But we live in a dangerous society, and it’s difficult to cover even the president of the United States from every angle. The problem, ultimately, at the end of the day, is the human heart, that’s what we got to address.”  

This year has seen a wave of political violence and threats against federal officials. 

Democratic Minnesota Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were killed in a targeted shooting in June. Authorities said they found a “hit list” of dozens of other Democrats the suspect had intended to target next. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s residence was set on fire in April while he and his family were inside. A man named Robert Phillip Ivers was arrested in September for a threatening manifesto targeting federal judges. Democratic lawmakers from Texas were evacuated from an Illinois hotel after a bomb threat in August.

Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania told reporters on Monday that most lawmakers don’t have security.

“If someone wanted to kill me it’d be easy,” Fetterman said.