Grievances related to the election — such as beliefs of rampant voter fraud — could lead domestic extremists toward violence in the weeks before and after the election, according to the FBI and Department of Homeland Security.
CNN reported Thursday that an intelligence bulletin from the agencies warned domestic violent extremists, or DVEs, “continue to create, exploit, and promote narratives about the election process or legal decisions involving political figures, and we are concerned that these grievances could motivate some DVEs to engage in violence, as we saw during the 2020 election cycle."
While the bulletin didn't identify a specific threat it warned of "attractive targets" for extremist violence, such as political rallies and ballot drop-box locations.
The bulletin pointed to two assassination plots against former President Donald Trump.
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Trump has leaned into conspiracy theories about his assassination attempts amid dipping poll numbers, and experts have warned that he could be priming his base for more violence if he loses the election.
Trump and his running mate have said the first shooting attempt was an “inside job” carried out by government agencies or falsely claimed that lawyers representing the shooter's parents have ties to the Democratic Party. Researchers who study political violence said those statements and images of Trump raising his fist with blood on his face mobilized his supporters to resort to violence in his defense.
“It is creating a permission structure for at least some people to want to take matters into their own hands,” said Matt Dallek, a George Washington University professor who studies the conservative movement and is working on a book about presidential assassination attempts. “It operates similarly to the ‘big lie’ about the 2020 election being stolen, and therein lies the danger to the country.”
The right has also pointed the finger at Democratic rhetoric for the tinder-box political climate.
