Training school district employees to recognize early signs of violent behavior is crucial to safe student transportation, especially when school bus drivers are the first school employees to interact with the children each day. And they are often the first to encounter perpetrated acts of violence.

Bret Brooks will discuss this challenging topic at the STN EXPO East conference in Charlotte-Concord, North Carolina on March 27. Brooks will equip attendees with a practical framework, built not just from his experience as a student transportation safety and security consultant but also his background as a U.S. Army major and retired member of the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

This general session will discuss behavioral indicators, environmental cues and communication patterns that could signal potential violent behavior from a student. Using case-analysis, real-world scenarios and behavioral research, Brooks will explain how acts of violence can often be identified on school buses before they happen by recognizing verbal and non-verbal indicators.

Understanding Violent Behavior

The session will highlight the importance of discerning behavior patterns from isolated behaviors, such as changes in speech, mood, posture, speech and eye contact, and identify what are escalating behaviors that require review. Brooks also plans to discuss different types of violence onboard the school bus and how exposure to violence is impacting student behavior.

Attendees will not only learn to recognize the signs and increase their situational awareness but take the appropriate steps to address the risk and respond appropriately. This session is beneficial for school bus transportation professionals and school administrators looking to equip their staff to increase situational awareness, be trained in de-escalation, prevention and make informed decisions that enhance safety in educational environments.

Early Bird savings ends Feb. 13. Register for the conference by the deadline to save $100 on main conference registration. Registration will give access to this and dozens of other educational sessions, hands-on trainings and networking events including the Ride and Drive/Technology Demo, Trade Show and Thomas Built Buses tour, all held over the six-day conference. Register at stnexpo.com/east.

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Related: STN EXPO East to Feature Timely Discussion on Managing Stress
Related: WATCH: National School Bus Inspection Training Returns to STN EXPO East
Related: WATCH: STN EXPO East Keynote Speaker to Outline Strategies for Creating Impactful Culture

The post Security Expert to Share Indicators Violent Behavior at STN EXPO East appeared first on School Transportation News.

U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., left, and Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., stand outside the regional ICE headquarters at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building on Jan. 10, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  A man squirted an unknown substance on Omar during a town hall on Jan. 27, 2026. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — U.S. Capitol Police investigated a drastic increase in threats against members of Congress and their staffs last year, looking into nearly 15,000 statements, behaviors and communications.

The volume of investigations rose sharply from the 9,474 USCP checked during 2024, the 8,008 in 2023 and the 7,501 in 2022. 

USCP Chief Michael Sullivan wrote in a statement released around the time a man squirted an unknown substance on Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar during a town hall Tuesday night that the agency has been strengthening its “partnerships with law enforcement agencies across the country to keep the Members of Congress safe when they are away from Capitol Hill.”

“We want to make sure agencies have the resources they need to be able to enhance protection, which is critical to the democratic process,” Sullivan added.

Political violence

Last year saw several instances of political violence, including the arson at the official home of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, the killing of Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, the shooting at the CDC’s headquarters in Atlanta and the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk during a rally at Utah Valley University.

Earlier Tuesday, at an appearance in Iowa, President Donald Trump singled out Omar, a Somali-American who came to the United States with family members as asylum seekers in 1995 and became a U.S. citizen in 2000. 

Trump, who frequently criticizes Omar, said she should not speak about the U.S. Constitution when she comes from a country that is a “disaster,” adding Somalia is known for “pirates.”

USCP said in its announcement the number of partnerships with local or state law enforcement to bolster security for lawmakers when they are away from Capitol Hill tripled during the last year, rising from approximately 115 to 350 departments.

“For any agency that does not have a formal agreement with us, I would encourage them to proactively reach out,” USCP Intelligence Services Bureau Director Ravi Satkalmi wrote in a statement. “The agreement provides a framework for us to reimburse partner agencies for support they provide to help secure Members of Congress.”

Spending increase for lawmakers’ security

Congress approved USCP’s annual funding bill in November, increasing spending on the agency by $46 million to a total of $852 million.

The legislation included $203.5 million “for the Senate and the House to enhance security measures and member protection,” according to a summary from Senate Appropriations Committee ranking member Patty Murray, D-Wash. 

That same package, which ended the government shutdown, provided an additional $30 million for USCP, $30 million for the U.S. Marshals Service to bolster security for members of the judicial and executive branches, and $28 million for enhanced safety for Supreme Court justices.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said Wednesday morning the attack on Omar was “unfortunate” and that everyone has a responsibility to “dial down the temperature.”

“When you’re a public figure, obviously, those are some of the things that come with the job. But it’s up to our citizens in this country too, the people out there, to do their part, obviously, to make their views known and weigh in and exercise their First Amendment right. But do it in a way that’s lawful and hopefully respectful.”

Marchers begin a walking and singing vigil outside All God's Children Church in Minneapolis on Jan. 17, 2026 | Photo by Ruth Conniff/Wisconsin Examiner

“A great American city is being invaded by its own federal government,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said on Saturday, after Border Patrol agents shot and killed an ICU nurse from Green Bay, Alex Pretti, in broad daylight while restraining him on the ground outside a doughnut shop.

In this dizzying new era of state terror, citizens and community leaders alike are trying to figure out what to do. What power do we have to face down a violent, repressive government targeting civilians in an operation aimed not at protecting public safety but at disrupting and destroying civil society? 

At a press conference with local media last week, U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan promised to fight against a Minneapolis-like surge in Wisconsin, drawing a lot of probing follow-up questions from reporters. Pocan voted against $64 billion in funding for the Department of Homeland Security that passed the House and is now, belatedly, facing difficulties in the Senate. He said he would work with local law enforcement, support lawsuits filed by Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul and other state AGs against aggressive ICE deployments, and encourage peaceful protestors marching in inflatable dinosaur costumes. 

But the question of how to fight back is a tough one.

The federal government has created a massive paramilitary organization that is systematically terrorizing Democratic-led Midwestern cities. The 3,000 immigration agents in Minneapolis far outnumber the local police force there. We have never seen anything quite like this.

Minnesota elected officials seem to be struggling with the question of how to resist and how to defend their citizens. Along with strong language about the damage the federal crackdown is doing to the community, Frey and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz repeatedly admonished protesters to remain peaceful, then deployed the Minnesota National Guard to block people from visiting a memorial at the site of Pretti’s death. Bringing in local and state law enforcement and the Guard to police protesters seems to buttress the Trump administration’s false claims that Minnesotans are the ones causing the violence, and that more armed men policing civilian neighborhoods will increase public safety. In reality, federal agents are the ones who are acting violently, not Minneapolis residents, and it’s not clear that local and state police are doing anything to protect the public from this threat.

The fact is, it’s hard to figure out what to do.

In Madison, on Saturday night more than 100 of my neighbors packed the James Reeb Unitarian Universalist Church for a potluck and discussion of nonviolent action, looking for answers to the terrible questions raised by the shooting death of yet another civilian in Minneapolis. 

How do we prepare for the possibility of an onslaught of armed federal agents into our own communities, busting down doors without warrants, dragging people out of their homes and firing on the neighbors who try to protect them? What power do we have to turn back the transformation of our country from democracy to authoritarian regime? 

The Madison event, planned before Pretti was killed, was organized by a coalition of dozens of peace and social justice groups under the umbrella Building Unity for Nonviolent Action. Speakers, including my friend John Nichols of The Nation magazine and Dane County Judge and Rev. Everett Mitchell, talked about the history of peaceful resistance in the U.S. The group showed part of the documentary “A Force More Powerful” about transformative nonviolent resistance struggles in India, the segregated American South, South Africa, Denmark and Chile. 

It was restorative to gather in person, take a break from isolation, helpless rage and doomscrolling and to spend some time contemplating the heroism of the Civil Rights movement activists who faced down hatred and violence with astounding courage and faith — despite all evidence to the contrary — in the fundamental decency of other people.

The difference between the Civil Rights era and today — and even the difference between the Black Lives Matter movement against police violence of a few years ago and today — is that the federal government can no longer be counted on to enforce civil rights, due process and justice. We are in a new era. “Those protections are gone,” Rev. Mitchell told the crowd. “So the only thing that you have available to you is each other.”

That bracing realization has spurred a proliferation of nonviolent resistance trainings in Minnesota and in other states, including Wisconsin.

One salutary side effect is that peaceful gatherings that bring out our capacity for love, mutual aid and connection help us avoid drowning in anger and despair.

Last weekend we drove to Minneapolis to visit our daughter who is, alarmingly, living in the middle of the chaos there. On our way to take her out for lunch we came upon a massive group of people holding a walking vigil in the neighborhood near where Renee Good was shot. About 600 Minnesotans were walking the streets singing, “You are not alone” and “Hold on, here comes the dawn,” as immigrant children and their parents peered out the windows of locked houses, waving. It was an unexpected moment of grace. A glimpse of the humanity and caring that are still possible. We need to hold onto that vision.

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Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, speaks at a press conference with members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus on Jan. 13, 2026. At left is a photo of Renee Good, 37, who was killed by an immigration officer in Minneapolis.(Photo by Ariana Figueroa/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON — Members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus announced Tuesday they will oppose any federal funding for immigration enforcement following the deadly shooting of a woman by an immigration officer in Minneapolis. 

“Our caucus will oppose all funding for immigration enforcement in any appropriations bills until meaningful reforms are enacted to end militarized policing practices,” Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar, who represents Minneapolis, said during a press conference.

Last week, federal immigration officer Jonathan Ross killed 37-year-old Renee Good in Minneapolis, which has seen a drastic increase in immigration enforcement for weeks following allegations of fraud. After the shooting, massive protests against the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement occurred in Minnesota and across the country.

The U.S. Senate is moving forward with the remaining appropriations bills for Congress to avoid a partial shutdown by a Jan. 30 deadline, and negotiations continue over funding for the Department of Homeland Security. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Tuesday that  funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement is “one of the major issues that the appropriators are confronting right now.” 

Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota said the appropriations bill for “Homeland is obviously the hardest one,” and that flat funding, or a continuing resolution, for the agency is the likely outcome.

Members of the Progressive Caucus are pushing for reforms including a ban on federal immigration officers wearing face coverings, the requirement of a warrant for an arrest and greater oversight of private detention facilities that hold immigrants. 

Washington Rep. Pramila Jayapal said Congress also needs to pass legislation to roll back the billions allocated to the Department of Homeland Security last summer in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The massive GOP spending and tax cuts package provided a huge budget increase to DHS for immigration enforcement of roughly $175 billion. 

“We have to urgently pass legislation to roll back the excessive funding for immigration enforcement” in the spending and tax cuts package, Jayapal said. “We cannot support additional funding for the Department of Homeland Security without seriously meaningful and significant reforms to the way that federal authorities conduct activity in our cities, our communities and our neighborhoods.”

Progressives press Jeffries

The Progressive Caucus has nearly 100 Democratic House members. Those members joining the press conference included Omar, Jayapal, Maxwell Frost of Florida, Chuy Garcia of Illinois, Delia Ramirez of Illinois and Maxine Dexter of Oregon. 

Garcia, who is the whip of the Progressive Caucus, said the group has informed House Leader Hakeem Jeffries of their position, but did not say if Jeffries supported slashing DHS funds. 

“They are very concerned, and they also share our sentiment that we need to do something to bring reform, to bring change to stop the lawlessness, the cruelty and the abuse of power that’s taking place within ICE and (Customs and Border Patrol) and DHS,” he said of Democratic leadership. 

While Democrats do not control either chamber, one tool lawmakers have used amid the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration campaign is the power of congressional oversight of federal facilities that house immigrants and are funded by Congress. 

But following the shooting in Minnesota, several lawmakers were denied an oversight visit to a federal ICE facility, a move that Democrats argue violates a court order. 

There will be an emergency hearing in the District Court for the District of Columbia on Wednesday on a new Trump administration policy that argues those facilities are funded through the spending and tax cuts package and therefore exempt from unannounced oversight visits. 

Jayapal called the reasoning “a B.S. argument, and hopefully the court is going to see that.” 

Investigations urged

Jayapal added that there also needs to be “independent investigations of lawlessness and violence by immigration agents and border patrol agents, and meaningful consequences for those who commit these acts of violence, not a slap on the wrist.”

Dexter, who represents part of Portland, Oregon, where two people were shot by CBP the same week Good was shot and killed, agreed.

“One thing is absolutely clear, when any law enforcement officer fires a weapon in any community, the public must have answers to questions,” Dexter said.

Ramirez said there needs to be greater accountability beyond appropriations, and said Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem should be impeached. 

Illinois Democratic Rep. Robin Kelly is planning to introduce articles of impeachment for Noem on three counts: obstructing Congress, violating public trust and self-dealing. While such a move likely would be uphill in the House, Republicans at the moment control the chamber by a very narrow margin.

“DHS and ICE have been empowered through a lack of oversight and too much latitude to violate our rights under the pretense of security and safety,” Ramirez said.

Frost said that Congress needs to assert its control over appropriations as a check against the Trump administration.  

“We cannot depend on this administration to police themselves and an end to the enforcement practices that are terrorizing our communities,” Frost said. 

Jennifer Shutt contributed to this report. 

Julia Coelho leads a song at a vigil outside the Wisconsin State Capitol after the killing of Renee Good by ICE agent Jonathan Ross in Minneapolis, MN. (Photo by Isiah Holmes/Wisconsin Examiner)

At a vigil outside the Wisconsin State Capitol Friday evening, a few days after a federal agent shot and killed Minneapolis mother Renee Nicole Good, hundreds of people held candles and raised their voices in a call and response song led by Madison Community Singing leader Julia Coelho: “This is way too big for you to carry it on your own …  you do not carry this all alone.”

Tiny lights flickered in the darkness. “This is not a rally centered on chants or speeches,” an organizer from the immigrant rights group Voces de la Frontera told the crowd. Instead, it was a moment to acknowledge our collective shock and grief, to support each other as we face the sickening and disorienting shift in the world around us, and to try to hold onto a protective sense of community. 

It was a needed respite from watching the video, obtained by the Minnesota Reformer, of the shooting of Good in broad daylight as she sat at the wheel of her minivan on a Midwestern residential street, apparently trying to move away from the agent who shot her. The horror of that scene was compounded by the propaganda from the Trump administration that followed, immediately blaming Good for her own death and calling her a “domestic terrorist,” while claiming that the real victim was the ICE agent who, after he shot her, walked away unhurt. 

Stoking political division and hate, justifying murder, treating people’s real lives like a video game — our poisonous political atmosphere is overwhelming. We need to put down the screens and restore our sense of human connection if we are going to overcome it.

Dane County Judge and Pastor Everett Mitchell, speaking at the vigil, quoted Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s eulogy for the three little girls killed in the 1963 bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. Their deaths, King said, “have something to say to every minister of the gospel who has remained silent behind the safe security of stained-glass windows. They have something to say to every politician who has fed his constituents with the stale bread of hatred and the spoiled meat of racism,” as well as to those who “stood on the sidelines in a mighty struggle for justice.”

“Madison,” Mitchell said, “we can no longer stand on the sideline and feel like we are protected. We must substitute courage for caution.”

Here in Wisconsin, the Minneapolis shooting hits close to home. Minnesota is our near neighbor. My daughter, who lives in the Twin Cities, was driving past the area of the ICE surge when Good was shot. She texted us about the unfolding chaos in real time, as ICE vehicles sped past her — putting our whole family on edge. 

Maybe we have had the false sense, as Mitchell said, that we were protected. 

The “Midwest nice” culture of Minnesota and Wisconsin — whether that describes taciturn conflict avoidance or genuine warmth — doesn’t fit with political violence. 

It’s impossible to see ourselves in Trump’s heated rhetoric about the “Radical Left Movement of Violence and Hate.” Nicole Good, whose last words were, “I’m not mad at you,” certainly doesn’t fit that profile. 

The killing of a U.S. citizen by federal agents, justified after the fact by the president, vice president, and secretary of Homeland Security, is a turning point for all of us. As investigative reporter Ken Klippenstein points out, Trump’s national security order targeting so-called leftwing domestic terrorist groups, and Attorney General Pam Bondi’s tag-along directive, “Ending Political Violence Against ICE” broadly justify the targeting of Americans who protest Trump’s immigration crackdown or attempt to help their immigrant neighbors who are being terrorized.

In a video filmed by the agent who shot Renee Good, released by a right-wing news outlet that tried to spin it as exonerating him, you can hear a man’s voice, immediately after the shooting, cursing Good, calling her a “f-ing bitch.” 

A Customs and Border Patrol Agent who shot Chicago resident Marimar Martinez five times and bragged about it in text messages, also allegedly used the word “bitch” as he rammed into her car, according to Martinez’s attorney. The Justice Department initially claimed Martinez, who survived. was the aggressor, saying she used her car to try to harm the agents — the same dubious claim made against Good — but then dropped all charges after Martinez challenged the government’s evidence.

Turning hyped-up, poorly trained agents onto the streets to pursue civilians is, contrary to Trump administration propaganda, making America much less safe. And pouring fuel on the fire with hateful rhetoric about “the radical Left” and the need to round up immigrant “criminals” —  a majority of whom have committed no crimes — is exacerbating this disaster.

The Trace puts the number of ICE shootings at 16, four of them fatal, since the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown began — including Silverio Villegas González, a father from Mexico who worked as a cook, killed just after he dropped off his children at school, while reportedly trying to flee from ICE officers during the Midway Blitz in Chicago. At the vigil Friday night, Mitchell connected those killings to racist violence from the Civil Rights era to the 2020 murder of George Floyd. “And now carved into the same, sorrowful stone is the name of Renee Nicole Good,” Mitchell said.

People are struggling to figure out what to make of our frightening new reality. At the Madison vigil, one activist declared that the escalating ICE crackdown “is not because they are inevitably powerful. It is because we are powerful.” But the escalation, which is targeting people who are decidedly not powerful, is coming directly out of the more than $170 billion allocated to immigration enforcement in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act — more than the yearly budget for all local and state law enforcement agencies in the U.S. combined, according to the Brennan Center. The Trump administration is using this newly empowered militarized police force to target civilians the administration characterizes as enemies. 

Most of the people I know are aghast at this scary turn of events. But one Wisconsinite I spoke with waved away the shooting, saying, “Minneapolis has a lot of problems.” There’s that false sense of being protected Mitchell called out. It’s really just denial — a powerful wish to believe that bad things only happen to other people, that violence is far away and somehow the fault of people who are different from us and who bring it on themselves.

But this touches all of us. And it won’t go away unless we get to the root of the problem — the unAmerican national security directives, the insane ICE budget, the lack of accountability — what Vice President JD Vance, astoundingly, asserted was “total immunity” for the rogue, masked agents targeting people in a political crackdown that has nothing to do with keeping us safe.

We have to see this for what it is. We need members of Congress to demand a rollback of the massive funding for Trump’s unaccountable police force. We need leaders who will state clearly, as Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey have done, that political violence against civilians waged by the Trump administration is immoral, illegal and has to stop. 

Most of all, we need each other. This is too heavy for one person to carry. We need to connect, to combine all of our efforts and to build a massive popular movement to take care of each other and reject the hateful forces that are trying to tear us apart.

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Portland police officers stand behind police tape in front of an apartment building in east Portland. (Photo by Alex Baumhardt/Oregon Capital Chronicle)

Federal agents reportedly shot and injured two people near a medical clinic in east Portland on Thursday afternoon, according to the Portland Police Bureau.

The Department of Homeland Security acknowledged the shooting on social media, though it referred to a U.S. Border Protection agent firing “a defensive shot.” Police had few immediate details to share about the incident, which occurred the day after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis. 

Like Minneapolis, Oregon’s largest city has been the subject of an intense immigration crackdown by federal agents in recent months. While a federal judge stymied President Donald Trump’s efforts to mobilize the Oregon National Guard and deploy guardsmen from other states to Portland, federal officials revealed in court in December that they’ve brought ICE agents from around the country to the metro as part of a major operation.

The Homeland Security Department claimed that agents were conducting a targeted stop against a Venezuelan national affiliated with the transnational Tren de Aragua criminal group, and that the driver attempted to run over agents when they identified themselves. The agency made similar claims about the Minneapolis shooting, though bystander videos from multiple angles showed that the officer fired into Renee Nicole Good’s car after he was clear of the car’s path. 

No such videos were immediately available of the Portland incident, which occurred near a medical campus on Southeast Main Street. 

“We are still in the early stages of this incident,” Portland Police Chief Bob Day said in a statement. “We understand the heightened emotion and tension many are feeling in the wake of the shooting in Minneapolis, but I am asking the community to remain calm as we work to learn more.”

Multnomah County Sheriff Nicole Morrisey O’Donnell said in a statement that the FBI is handling an investigation into the shooting. Attorney General Dan Rayfield announced Thursday evening that his office will investigate whether any federal officers acted outside the scope of their authority, in keeping with a November warning he and district attorneys of the state’s three largest counties gave the federal government that the state will investigate and prosecute federal agents who engage in excessive force.

“We have been clear about our concerns with the excessive use of force by federal agents in Portland, and today’s incident only heightens the need for transparency and accountability,” Rayfield said. “Oregonians deserve clear answers when people are injured in their neighborhoods.”

Shooting reported mid-afternoon

Police received reports of a shooting on the 10200 block of Southeast Main Street at 2:18 p.m. Six minutes later, they received a call for help from a man at Northeast 146th Avenue and East Burnside, a 10-minute drive away. 

The shooting occurred near an Adventist Health building with several offices and medical clinics, the health organization confirmed in an email. The clinics closed for the rest of the day, and Portland Police were seen escorting people out in the evening. 

Police found a man and woman with apparent gunshot wounds. Emergency responders transported both people to the hospital and their condition is unknown, according to police. 

State Rep. Ricki Ruiz, D-Gresham, represents a neighboring state House district and spoke to the Capital Chronicle near an apartment complex where the shooting victims called for help. He said the two were hospitalized at Oregon Health & Science University and he was unsure of their condition.

A woman he spoke to said she spotted U.S. Border Patrol agents roaming the area earlier this morning, Ruiz said.

Lilian Rubi Herrera, who spoke to the Capital Chronicle in Spanish outside the apartment building, receives donations from her followers on social media to buy groceries for immigrants who are fearful of leaving their homes. She was in the neighborhood distributing food when she heard about the shooting and went to the scene. 

Herrera said her social media followers are extremely sad because of the shooting in Minneapolis.

“Out of all the years I’ve lived here, I never thought I would witness this type of treatment from the federal government.” she said. “They treat us worse than dogs, and that’s not fair. We must use our voices and seek help for our community.” 

A Capital Chronicle reporter saw men wearing FBI gear walking around the apartment complex behind police tape. 

State, local leaders condemn shooting, urge caution

Within hours of the shooting, about 150 people had gathered outside Portland City Hall, chanting “abolish ICE.” Some held candles and anti-ICE signs as they waited to hear from city councilors.

Portland City Councilor Angelita Morillo, speaking to the crowd, called upon Congress and local officials to resist ICE operations and strip funding from the agency.

“The reality is that anyone who chooses to stand in solidarity with our community is putting themselves directly in harm’s way, because that’s what it means to sacrifice and to love your neighbor,” she said. “And what I see here is we have a group of people that is prepared to do anything and everything to take care of our immigrant community.”

Councilor Candace Avalos said the recent shooting victims were her constituents in her city councils’s district, arguing that “this is what the Trump administration’s deportation agenda looks like.” She called for the audience to keep organizing until ICE agents leave the city.

“We keep each other safe when ICE shows up in our neighborhoods, it’s not politicians who stop them,” she said. “It’s neighborhood whistles, with their phones out, standing shoulder and shoulder, forcing them out of our communities.”

Portland Mayor Keith Wilson called on ICE to immediately pause its operations in Portland and urged residents to remain calm.

“We cannot sit by while constitutional protections erode and bloodshed mounts. Portland is not a ‘training ground’ for militarized agents, and the ‘full force’ threatened by the administration has deadly consequences,” Wilson said. “As mayor, I call on ICE to end all operations in Portland until a full investigation can be completed.”

U.S. Rep. Maxine Dexter, a Democrat who represents Portland, also urged her constituents to stay calm and said local law enforcement must be able to conduct a full investigation. 

“ICE has done nothing but inject terror, chaos, and cruelty into our communities,” Dexter said. “Trump’s immigration machine is using violence to control our communities—straight out of the authoritarian playbook. ICE must immediately end all active operations in Portland.”

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, added that he was monitoring reports, and that “Trump’s deployment of federal agents in my hometown is clearly inflaming violence — and must end.”

Reporter Mia Maldonado contributed to this report.

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Polls do not show that most U.S. adults think violence against leaders is acceptable.

YouGov poll, conducted Sept. 10: 11% said violence can sometimes be justified to achieve political goals; the figure was 24% among very liberal respondents.

PRRI International, August-September 2024: 18% (29% of Republicans) said “true American patriots may have to resort to violence to save the country.”

University of Chicago, June 2024: 10% said use of force was justified to prevent Donald Trump from becoming president.

University of California, Davis, May-June 2024: 26% said violence was usually or always justified to advance at least one political objective.

The most-Americans claim was made by Republican Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, discussing conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination.

Vos cited Rutgers University poll results published in April: 56% self-identifying as left of center said the murder of Trump would be at least somewhat justified. 

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

• YouGov: Question in poll conducted Sept. 10, 2025
• YouGov: Question in poll conducted Sept. 10, 2025, additional result
• PRRI: Challenges to Democracy: The 2024 Election in Focus
• University of Chicago: Political Violence and the Election
• Injury Epidemiology journal: Trends in views of democracy and society and support for political violence in the USA, 2022–2024: findings from a nationally representative survey
• iHeart.com: Jay Weber Show interview of Robin Vos
• Speaker Robin Vos: Email
• Network Contagion Research Institute/Rutgers University: Assassination Culture: How Burning Teslas and Killing Billionaires Became a Meme Aesthetic for Political Violence

Do most Americans say violence against leaders is OK? is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.