Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Tunisian President: The government will not abandon its responsibilities to bring back its citizens detained by the Israeli entity.
Anadolu: Erdogan issues presidential decree to freeze assets of dozens of Iranian entities linked to Iran’s nuclear program
Two killed in Manchester synagogue attack: UK police
Global Sumud Flotilla: We call for immediate international intervention to ensure the safety of the fleet's volunteers and secure their prompt release
Global Sumud Flotilla: More than 443 volunteers from 47 countries are being illegally detained after the fleet was seized by "Israel"
Global Sumud Flotilla: Israeli occupation forces intercepted the peaceful convoy’s ships in international waters and abducted hundreds of volunteers
Madi to Al Mayadeen: Preparations are underway to organize protests in Swiss cities in solidarity with the Sumud Flotilla
Spokeswoman for the Swiss ship of the Sumud Flotilla, Rania Madi, to Al Mayadeen: Six Swiss ships participating in the fleet confirmed they came under an Israeli attack
Media platforms: The navigational data of the Mikeno ship show it entering Gaza’s territorial waters, now just 9 nautical miles from the enclave
The first ship has reached Gaza’s territorial waters despite Israeli attempts to intercept it

US political violence hits highest level in decades, Bloomberg says

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Bloomberg
  • 12 Sep 2025 14:23
3 Min Read

Bloomberg says political violence in the US has surged to its highest since the 1960s, with assassinations and attempts driven by deepening polarization.

Listen
  • x
  • A photo of Charlie Kirk, the CEO and co-founder of Turning Point USA, who was shot and killed, sits at a vigil in his memory, Thursday, September 11, 2025, in Orem, Utah (AP)
    A photo of Charlie Kirk, the CEO and co-founder of Turning Point USA, who was shot and killed, sits at a vigil in his memory, Thursday, September 11, 2025, in Orem, Utah. (AP)

Political violence in the United States has reached its highest level in more than half a century, with assassinations and attempts on politicians over the past five years outpacing records going back to the 1960s, according to a Bloomberg Geo-Economic analysis.

Drawing on data from the Violence Project, Bloomberg reported that since early 2021, there have been five assassinations or attempted assassinations targeting political figures, including two against then-presidential candidate Donald Trump in 2024. The findings follow the killing this week of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, a close Trump ally, during a Utah campus event.

“Political violence is the antithesis of a healthy democracy,” analysts Jennifer Welch and Martin Quick wrote in a Bloomberg research note. “Its causes belie easy explanations, and its perpetrators and victims cross ideological lines.”

The analysts identified intensifying partisan divides as a key driver behind the surge. Voteview data compiled at UCLA show that ideological distance between Democrats and Republicans in both chambers of Congress has steadily widened since the end of World War II.

“Polarization often goes hand-in-hand with political violence,” Welch and Quick warned. “The risk looking forward is violence may beget more violence.”

Related News

Egypt says Trump’s Gaza plan has gaps, warns against escalation

Tucker Carlson: Israeli officers gave orders on Iran inside Pentagon

Kirk killing exposes void of unifying leader

The assassination of Charlie Kirk has drawn broad condemnation but highlighted the absence of a national leader able to calm tensions, Politico reported.

Former Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels said he could not identify anyone positioned to calm tensions. Bill Daley, a onetime chief of staff to President Barack Obama, told the outlet that only President Donald Trump “represents everyone,” while Rep. Don Bacon hoped Trump would rise to the moment, though “populists dwell on anger,” he noted.

Trump condemned the shooting at Utah Valley University in an Oval Office address, decrying the “demonizing” of opponents but also blaming “radical left lunatics” for vilifying Kirk, saying they compared him to "Nazis and the world’s worst mass murderers and criminals." The president’s history of incendiary rhetoric and threats against political foes has led some to question whether he can serve as "consoler-in-chief," as dubbed by Politico.

Trump demonizes but hates demonization

What Trump accuses the left of doing, which is demonizing Kirk, Trump himself has long done to his opponents and political foes, making long rants on social media and even threatening to hold back federal funding from certain causes with which he has ideological disagreements. 

Civil rights leader William Barber told Politico that cooling today’s violence may require “presidents, pulpits, and politicians” rather than a single figure. Others, such as former Bush Press Secretary Ari Fleischer, argued that leadership can still rally the country, citing post-9/11 unity.

Past presidents issued statements urging peace. George W. Bush said violence must leave public life; Barack Obama called the attack “despicable,” and Bill Clinton urged Americans to debate “passionately, yet peacefully.”

Yet analysts told Politico that few public figures now command trust across ideological lines. Michael Wear, a former Obama faith advisor, said Kirk’s death exposed a shift in politics: leaders once sought to persuade beyond their base, but today many win praise for channeling anger at opponents.

  • United States
  • Charlie Kirk
  • political violence
  • Donald Trump

Most Read

Last photo showing Martyr Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and Martyr Hajj Hassan in a Resistance operations room, Beirut's southern suburb, Lebanon, days before their martyrdom (Al Mayadeen)

In heart of battle: Al Mayadeen shares last photo of Sayyed Nasrallah

  • Politics
  • 27 Sep 2025
Hamas fighters stand in formation ahead of a ceremony to hand over Israeli captives to the Red Cross in Nuseirat, Gaza Strip, Feb. 22, 2025. (AP)

Hamas reviews Trump’s Gaza ceasefire plan as PIJ rejects

  • Palestine
  • 30 Sep 2025
Iraq at a crossroads: A new war front?

Iraq at a crossroads: A new war front?

  • West Asia
  • 30 Sep 2025
Trump’s 21-point Gaza plan vs Netanyahu’s demand for Hamas defeat

Trump vows 'something special' in ME; Israeli delegation in chaos

  • US & Canada
  • 28 Sep 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
Tucker Carlson speaks at a memorial for Charlie Kirk, Sunday, September 21, 2025, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona (AP)
Politics

Tucker Carlson: Israeli officers gave orders on Iran inside Pentagon

Russian President Vladimir Putin addresses a meeting with foreign policy experts at the Valdai Discussion Club in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia, on Thursday, October 2, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Putin warns Europe on militarization, calls Gaza war a tragedy

Activists in orange life jackets sit aboard a Gaza-bound Sumud flotilla boat as Israeli navy soldiers sail it into the port of Asdod, occupied Palestine, Thursday, Octember 2, 2025, after it was intercepted while approaching the Gaza coast (AP)
Politics

South Africa demands 'Israel' release Gaza flotilla activists

The leader of Yemen's Ansar Allah movement, Sayyed Abdul-Malik al-Houthi. (Al-Masirah TV)
Politics

Trump's plan aims to disarm, expel Gaza's defenders: Sayyed al-Houthi

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS