Congressman’s office attacked by man with baseball bat, 2 hurt.

Democratic Rep. Gerry Connolly’s Staff Members Assaulted in His Office

On May 15, 2023, U.S. Rep. Gerry Connolly reported that a man with a baseball bat walked into his office in Fairfax, Virginia, asked for him, and then assaulted two members of his staff. This is the latest attack amid a sharp uptick in violence directed at lawmakers and their families.

Fairfax City Police confirmed that a suspect is in custody and the victims are being treated for injuries that are not life-threatening.

Connolly’s Statement

In a statement posted on Twitter, Connolly said the man entered his district office Monday morning and asked for him before “committing an act of violence” against two staff members. “The thought that someone would take advantage of my staff’s accessibility to commit an act of violence is unconscionable and devastating,” the Democrat said.

Connolly represents Fairfax County-based 11th District in the Washington suburbs. He’s serving his eighth term in Congress. He told CNN that his office sustained damage, including broken windows.

Increased Threats to Lawmakers

Threats to lawmakers and their families have increased sharply in recent years. The U.S. Capitol Police investigated around 7,500 cases of potential threats against members of Congress in 2022. The year before, they investigated around 10,000 threats to members, more than twice the number from four years earlier.

Other elected officials from Virginia swiftly condemned the violence. U.S. Sen. Mark Warner retweeted Connolly’s statement, calling the attack an “extraordinarily disturbing development.”

“Intimidation and violence – especially against public servants – has no place in our society,” he said.

“The coward who did this should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” tweeted Attorney General Jason Miyares, a Republican.

Recent Attacks on Lawmakers

In October, a man broke into the San Francisco home of then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, demanding to speak with her, before he smashed her husband, Paul, over the head with a hammer. In July, a man accosted New York Rep. Lee Zeldin, a Republican who was running for governor of New York, as he spoke at a campaign event and told Zeldin, “You’re done.” Zeldin wrestled the man to the ground and escaped with only a minor scrape.

The Western Journal has reviewed this Associated Press story and may have altered it prior to publication to ensure that it meets our editorial standards.

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