Trump rhetoric leads to rising threats against Congress, Parmila Jayapal

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Rep Jayapal Rising threats against Congress linked to Trump rhetoric

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) holds a press conference. Photo: Jovelle Tamayo/ for The Washington Post via Getty Images Rep. l (D-Wash.) said there's a link between rising threats against lawmakers and rhetoric from the Republican Party. Why it matters: Members of Congress have faced an increasing amount of threats in recent months from the public. Driving the news: Jayapal recently she received from Trump supporters as a way to show "what's at stake" for America, she told In the messages, a male caller can be heard threatening Jayapal, the first-ever Indian American congresswoman. She is asked to return to India. was previously threatened by an armed man outside her home. What she said: "Typically, political figures don't show their vulnerability," "I chose to do so here because we cannot accept violence as our new norm. We also cannot accept the racism and sexism that underlies and propels so much of this violence.""There is a sense that everything is so unfair and it's been propelled by Donald Trump," she told . "The only recourse is to violence, and that is an extremely dangerous thing.""We saw it come to fruition on Jan. 6. And now in ways that I've seen outside my door," she added. The big picture: Threats against lawmakers jumped by 144% between 2017 and 2021, according .The Capitol Police opened up cases for more than 1,800 threats within the first quarter of the year, What we've seen: Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) collection of threatening voicemails he received back in July in which one caller threatened his wife and baby. said in July his family received a death threat over the Jan. 6 select committee hearings. (R-N.Y.), was attacked at a campaign event this summer. told Axios that "everybody's on high alert" due to these incidents. What we're watching: U.S. House has offered to pay for lawmakers to add security upgrades to their homes, Go deeper:

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