Threats Against Members of Congress on the Rise

Threats against members of Congress have increased so dramatically in 2010 that Capitol Police have increased security efforts, raised the number of shifts officers work, and asked for a bigger budget, Politico reported Tuesday.

So far this year there has been a 300 percent increase in the number of threats against lawmakers and their families, according to FBI documents requested by Politico under the Freedom of Information Act.

During the contentious debate over the economic stimulus bill, Rep. Heath Schuler (D-N.C.) received a voice mail from a man who said he had voted for him.


"If you vote for that stimulus package, I'm gonna kill you," the man said. "Simple as that."

The FBI discovered the caller was a 70-year-old resident of Shuler's district with "a history of mental illness and a cache of guns." He was arrested but the case was dropped when a court found he was incompetent to stand trial.

When asked why he had threatened to kill Schuler, the man replied, "I was trying to work the political scene."

Threats have been made against Democrats and Republicans alike, according to Politico:

Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) were threatened with assassination. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Rep. Ciro Rodriguez (D-Texas) were threatened with bodily harm. Someone told Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) that her throat would be cut. Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) was told someone would physically "f-- her up" if she held a town hall meeting in her district, according to the FBI files.

There may have been more threats -- the FBI won't release information on investigations that are still open -- and there will likely be more this year.

The FBI documents show that the majority of suspects making threats are male and owners of guns. Many had endured some kind of "major life stress," such as the loss of a job or an illness. Several had been treated for mental illness.

Read the full Politico report here.