The assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk has prompted members of Congress to cancel public appearances, move events indoors and press for expanded security protections as lawmakers grapple with heightened fears for their personal safety.
Kirk, 31, was fatally shot Wednesday while addressing a large outdoor crowd at Utah Valley University. The FBI has released photos of a person of interest but has not identified a suspect or announced a motive. The brazen, public attack added to a string of politically charged violence that has shadowed U.S. politics in recent years.
Lawmakers described a mood of alarm inside the Capitol on Thursday. Speaker Mike Johnson opened a moment of silence in the House chamber, but the observance quickly dissolved into partisan shouting. “Y’all caused this,” Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., yelled at Democrats, while Johnson urged colleagues to “walk in the dignity of their office” and called for lowering political temperatures.
Several members said they were changing plans out of concern for their safety. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., postponed two weekend events in North Carolina citing security worries. Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., said she would cancel outdoor appearances “for the foreseeable future” and vowed to carry a firearm at all times. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., said he planned to continue public events to avoid succumbing to a “culture of fear.”
Lawmakers and security officials described immediate operational shifts. U.S. Capitol Police increased visible patrols around the Capitol, and the department said it is on track to investigate roughly 14,000 threat cases involving lawmakers this year — up from about 9,000 in 2024 and fewer than 4,000 in 2017. The Secret Service also intensified protections for President Donald Trump; a Pentagon ceremony marking the 24th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks was moved to a more secure location so the president could attend, and additional measures were deployed when he went to a New York Yankees game.
Capitol Police responded to a bomb threat near Democratic National Committee headquarters on Thursday; the alarm proved to be false, but officials said the episode underscored the heightened threat environment.
Speaker Johnson said House leadership was reviewing a pilot program that expanded funding for personal security earlier this year. The program provided up to $20,000 in residential security reimbursements and $5,000 a month for private protection for participating members; fewer than two dozen lawmakers opted in, Johnson said. With the pilot set to expire at the end of September, he suggested Congress could extend or broaden the initiative.
Threats against members of Congress, their families and staff have risen in recent years, officials said, and the Capitol Police reported operating in a “heightened threat environment” since the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Lawmakers referenced that and other episodes of political violence — including assassination attempts on President Trump, the hammer attack on Paul Pelosi and other recent killings — as part of a pattern that has intensified security concerns.
Some members called for more immediate action from leadership. Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., criticized congressional leaders as “woefully ill-prepared” and said the institution needed to “re-evaluate what we’re doing.” Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., who has received death threats himself, said privately many colleagues were fearful and had been seeking meetings with the Speaker about security.
Others warned that curtailing public access to officials could alter long-standing ties between representatives and constituents. “It’s important that I continue to go out and do what I would normally do,” Sen. Hawley said, arguing against withdrawing from public engagement.
The choices made in the coming days and weeks could reshape how members interact with voters and balance visibility with protection. For now, leaders are weighing whether to extend security funding pilots, expand protective measures for more members and reassess protocols for events and constituency outreach as they confront a surge in threats and a series of high-profile attacks that have renewed debate over the safety of public officials.