Leftist Political Violence: The Vast, Unspoken National Epidemic

March 27, 2025 Emergency Preparedness Trump Presidency Woke Mind Virus
Leftist Political Violence Epidemic

Leftist Political Violence Epidemic

In the aftermath of the January 6 Capitol protest, the event has become a rallying cry for Democrats and the corporate press to label all right-wing dissent as violent extremism. Yet, this narrow lens conveniently excludes a far longer and more consistent history of left-wing political violence — a trend rarely examined with equal vigor. While the January 6 protest was a one-day incident at a single location, leftist political violence has occurred repeatedly, with devastating consequences, across the United States for years.

A Forgotten Act of Political Terror: The Congressional Baseball Shooting

On June 14, 2017, a left-wing gunman opened fire on Republican lawmakers during an early-morning baseball practice at Eugene Simpson Stadium Park in Alexandria, Virginia. The assailant, 66-year-old James Hodgkinson of Illinois, specifically targeted GOP members. He asked bystanders, “Are these Republicans or Democrats?” before opening fire with a rifle.

House Majority Whip Steve Scalise was critically injured, shot in the hip. Also wounded were U.S. Capitol Police officers Crystal Griner and David Bailey, congressional aide Zack Barth, and Tyson Foods lobbyist Matt Mika. Scalise nearly died from his injuries and underwent multiple surgeries and months of rehabilitation.

Hodgkinson, who was killed in the shootout, had a long history of leftist political agitation. He was a supporter of Bernie Sanders and an active participant in anti-Trump and anti-GOP Facebook groups. His online posts included sentiments such as “Trump is a traitor” and “It’s time to destroy Trump & Co.” Despite this being one of the most politically targeted attacks in recent memory, the shooting was quickly downplayed and faded from headlines — rarely mentioned by Democrats or the media as an example of left-wing extremism.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2017/06/breaking-house-majority-whip-steve-scalise-aides-shot-baseball-practice/

Kamala Harris and the 2020 Riots: A Public Endorsement of Chaos

In stark contrast to the harsh condemnations surrounding January 6, Vice President Kamala Harris and many Democrat leaders publicly supported the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests — many of which devolved into violent riots. Over $2 billion in property damage was reported during that summer, with over 2,000 police officers injured, dozens of deaths, and countless small businesses burned or looted across more than 140 cities. Minneapolis, Portland, Kenosha, and Seattle became epicenters of destruction and lawlessness.

Kamala Harris, then a U.S. Senator, openly encouraged support for the Minnesota Freedom Fund, a bail fund that helped release arrested rioters back onto the streets. Speaking on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in June 2020, Harris stated:

“They’re not going to stop. And everyone beware, because they’re not going to stop… They’re not going to stop before Election Day in November, and they’re not going to stop after Election Day… They should not, and we should not.”

This wasn’t an isolated misstep — other prominent Democrats and left-leaning celebrities echoed similar sentiments, justifying the violence as a necessary form of expression. In one infamous CNN segment, a reporter stood in front of burning buildings while a chyron read: “Fiery but mostly peaceful protests.”

Media Bias and Death Count Misrepresentation on January 6

The corporate press routinely cites “five deaths” from the January 6 Capitol breach to imply mass violence caused by rioters. However, that narrative is factually misleading:

  • Ashli Babbitt, an unarmed veteran, was the only person shot — and she was killed by Capitol Police.
  • Two protestors died of medical emergencies.
  • Officer Brian Sicknick died the next day from a stroke. The DC Medical Examiner ruled his death as due to “natural causes” and not a result of any injury sustained during the event.
  • Two other police officers died by suicide days after the event, but no medical examiner linked those deaths causally to the riot.

Compare this to the 2020 riots, where deaths directly resulted from arson, vehicular homicide, beatings, and gunfire — many victims were small business owners or innocent bystanders. Yet the media downplayed or ignored those deaths, and few perpetrators were ever prosecuted to the extent seen for January 6 participants.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2025/03/january-6-is-not-free-pass-left-wing/

The Double Standard in Justice and Memory

While hundreds of January 6 attendees have been subjected to harsh prison sentences and pre-trial solitary confinement, many arrested BLM rioters were bailed out, had charges dropped, or received no prison time. This discrepancy illustrates a two-tiered justice system — one that punishes based on political affiliation rather than consistent standards of law and order.

Even four years later, Democratic politicians and media figures continue referencing January 6 as a symbol of existential threat, while acts like the attempted mass murder of Republican lawmakers in 2017 are rarely mentioned, let alone invoked to warn about left-wing extremism.

In October 2024, Representative Steve Scalise, the very man nearly killed in the baseball shooting, criticized Vice President Harris for her “violence-inciting rhetoric” after she made inflammatory remarks targeting Trump supporters. His firsthand experience gives him rare moral authority, yet his warnings are barely acknowledged by the same political class that vilifies anyone even tangentially connected to the Capitol protest.

disparity in legal and media treatment between Democrat-aligned groups (e.g., Antifa or BLM protestors) and Republican-aligned groups (e.g., populists or January 6 attendees)

disparity in legal and media treatment between Democrat-aligned groups (e.g., Antifa or BLM protestors) and Republican-aligned groups (e.g., populists or January 6 attendees)

The Double Standard of Justice: Celebrated Chaos vs. Condemned Dissent

During the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, the nation witnessed widespread unrest that led to the destruction of over 1,500 businesses in Minneapolis alone. Fires burned through neighborhoods, police precincts were overrun, and countless local shops—many minority-owned—were looted or permanently shuttered. Despite the immense property damage and violence, many of the perpetrators were not only released without charges but celebrated in certain circles. The media often framed the riots as “mostly peaceful,” while celebrities and politicians amplified support. Actress Julia Roberts, a vocal BLM supporter, exemplified this cultural bias when she made headlines by saying “F*** Trump voters,” a comment that drew praise rather than the kind of public scorn that would meet similar language from a conservative public figure.

Meanwhile, the corporate press and justice system have aggressively targeted Republican and populist demonstrators, even in cases involving nonviolent protest. The disparity is particularly stark when contrasting how January 6 participants were treated compared to violent left-wing demonstrators. Many nonviolent attendees of the Capitol protest faced federal charges, solitary confinement, and lengthy sentences. Yet, few if any individuals involved in arson, looting, or attacks on law enforcement during the BLM riots saw equivalent punishment. Bail funds supported by prominent Democrats, including Kamala Harris, helped quickly release those arrested during the 2020 unrest, enabling repeat offenses without significant consequence.

The starkest example of ideologically motivated violence is still the 2017 congressional baseball shooting. James Hodgkinson, a left-wing Bernie Sanders supporter, opened fire on Republican lawmakers at a practice field, critically wounding House Majority Whip Steve Scalise. Despite clear political motivation—Hodgkinson had a history of anti-GOP rhetoric—the incident quickly disappeared from media discussion and was never used as a symbol of “leftist radicalism” by Democrats. In contrast, January 6 continues to be invoked regularly as proof of systemic right-wing extremism, despite zero firearms being found among protestors and no direct evidence tying the event to an organized armed insurrection. The selective framing of political violence reveals not just media bias, but a broader weaponization of justice—where one side is immune from accountability, and the other faces the full force of law for far less.

Conclusion

The violence of January 6 was wrong — but so too was the months of rioting, arson, assault, and targeted political shootings carried out by individuals on the Left. To ignore or excuse one while obsessively prosecuting the other is not justice — it’s weaponized hypocrisy.

If we are to preserve civil discourse and prevent future political violence, all ideological violence must be condemned equally. Otherwise, we risk feeding a cycle of selective outrage, where one side is perpetually immune from scrutiny, while the other is demonized into silence.

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