Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania sounded the alarm this week over a new report documenting a surge in left-wing political violence, urging Democrats and others to be cautious with language that he argued can fuel extremism.
Posting on X, Fetterman shared a screenshot of an Axios article titled “Study: Left-wing terrorism climbs to 30-year high,” adding his own call for restraint. He wrote, “political violence is always wrong,” and pressed the public to “turn the temperature down.”
“Unchecked extreme rhetoric, like labels as Hitler or fascist, will foment more extreme outcomes,” he said. “Political violence is always wrong — no exceptions.”
“We must all turn the temperature down,” he repeated in his post.
The research, conducted by the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS), revealed that incidents tied to left-wing groups have reached their highest level in three decades. Axios noted that while right-wing attacks have historically been more common, the first half of 2025 saw a steep decline in far-right activity.
According to CSIS, a dataset of 750 domestic attacks and plots between January 1, 1994, and July 4, 2025, showed shifting patterns. Since 2016, left-wing extremists were responsible for 41 incidents, while far-right extremists accounted for 152 during the same time span.
The study highlighted several comparisons: left-wing violence has led to 13 deaths in the past ten years, far fewer than the 112 lives lost in right-wing attacks and 82 from jihadist terrorism. Yet so far in 2025 alone, there have been at least five plots or assaults linked to left-wing extremists, compared to just one attributed to the far right.
The issue has taken on added urgency in light of the September 10 assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk during a student Q&A session at Utah Valley University.
Breitbart News reported that Utah Governor Spencer Cox disclosed disturbing details about the weapon used in the attack, saying “bullet casings in the rifle” that the accused shooter carried “were etched” with taunts such as, “Hey fascist! Catch!”
Despite the killing, some Democratic leaders have continued using inflammatory language toward Trump administration officials. California Governor Gavin Newsom, for example, has labeled White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller a “fascist.”
{Matzav.com}
