Two Years After Butler, Democrats’ Hateful Rhetoric Persists

Two years ago today, on July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania, America witnessed a horrific assassination attempt on then-candidate Donald J. Trump. A deranged gunman, radicalized amid years of inflammatory Democratic rhetoric, opened fire at a campaign rally, grazing the president’s ear, killing firefighter Corey Comperatore, and injuring others. Trump’s defiant response—“Fight! Fight! Fight!”—with blood on his face and fist raised became an enduring symbol of resilience. 

Despite that near-tragedy, and subsequent assassination attempts against President Trump, the left has shown little interest in lowering the temperature. Instead, figures like San Diego City Councilmember Marni von Wilpert, now the Democratic nominee for California’s 48th Congressional District, continue to traffic in the same divisive language that critics say fuels political violence. 

Von Wilpert, an Obama-era workers’ rights attorney and former prosecutor running to flip the seat blue, has a well-documented record of branding President Trump and Republicans as existential threats. 

In campaign appearances and statements, she has repeatedly warned of an “authoritarian White House” under Trump. “The first thing we need to do is… be a check on an authoritarian White House like Donald Trump,” von Wilpert has said. 

She has also invoked the Founding Fathers: “Our founding fathers put in 3 branches of government to be coequal branches for a reason, and it was to prevent someone like Donald Trump from claiming authoritarianism in our country.”

 In another instance, she declared, “If we don’t fight back now, I don’t know what democracy is going to be left.” Her rhetoric extends beyond Trump to broad attacks on “MAGA Republicans,” claiming “our democracy [is] under threat by MAGA Republicans.” 

Von Wilpert has also targeted law enforcement, describing ICE operations as involving “masked mobs” engaged in “terror tactics,” while leading efforts to challenge the agency in court. 

RNC Spokesman Nick Poche condemned the pattern in a statement to the California Globe: “Democrats like Marni von Wilpert continue to spew the same extremist rhetoric that has led to three assassination attempts against President Trump. Americans will never forget what happened in Butler—or the Democrats who refused to lower the temperature and instead doubled down.”

Von Wilpert’s campaign centers on opposing Trump’s agenda, protecting abortion access, and criticizing Republican policies on immigration and the economy. She advanced from the June primary in the redrawn district, which was adjusted to favor Democrats, and will face Supervisor Jim Desmond in November.

As the nation marks the second anniversary of the Butler attack, with President Trump crediting divine intervention for his survival, concerns over escalating political violence remain. 

Critics argue that inflammatory language from candidates like von Wilpert, framing political opponents as authoritarians destroying democracy, does nothing to heal divisions and may only exacerbate them. In a battleground district encompassing parts of San Diego and Riverside counties, voters will decide in November whether such rhetoric resonates or repels.