Our book, Divided We Stand, looks at the 2020 election and the January 6 insurrection. Some Republican leaders -- and a measurable number of rank-and-file voters -- are open to violent rebellion, coups, and secession.
The Capitol Police last year reported that they investigated more than double the number of threats against members of Congress as they did four years earlier. Driven by former President Donald Trump’s lies that the 2020 election was stolen from him, threats against election workers have exploded, with one in six reporting threats against them and many seasoned election administrators leaving the job or considering it.
According to a July report from the University of Chicago Project on Security and Threats, "From April 6, 2023 to June 26, 2023, Americans agreeing that 'the use of force is justified to restore Donald Trump to the presidency' increased from 4.5% to 7%, or the equivalent of an estimated shift from 12 million to 18 million American adults."
That research institute found that the increase "likely reflects the response of more intense commitment to Trump following the announcement of the federal indictment against him for mishandling 3 classified documents on June 9, 2023 — about two and a half weeks before our June 26, 2023, survey."
Matt Gaetz: “Only through force do we make any change…” pic.twitter.com/b9mSi6aGRK
— Frank Figliuzzi (@FrankFigliuzzi1) August 12, 2023
