From the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol to the public fascination with accused killer Luigi Mangione, a troubling question is emerging in American politics: Are more Americans becoming willing to justify violence when it serves a cause they believe in?
Political scientist Robert A. Pape, director of the University of Chicago's Project on Security and Threats, argues that the United States has entered a dangerous new era of what he calls "violent populism."
In his new book, “Our Own Worst Enemies: America in the Age of Violent Populism,” Pape examines how political polarization, distrust of institutions and public anger are weakening longstanding democratic norms.
Pape's August 2026 national survey found that 25% of Americans agreed force was justified to remove President Donald Trump from office. His research also identified substantial support for using the military against anti-Trump protesters.
The phenomenon crosses ideological lines.
President Trump's pardons of January 6 defendants received support from 63% of Republicans, according to a Public Religion Research Institute survey. Meanwhile, Mangione, accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare executive Brian Thompson in 2024, has attracted sympathy from Americans angry about the health insurance industry.
But the evidence is not uniformly alarming. A separate 2026 University of California, Davis study found declining support for political violence across most measures, with roughly three-quarters of Americans rejecting violence to advance political objectives.
Pape warns that even minority support for violence can threaten democratic institutions when political opponents are increasingly viewed as enemies rather than fellow citizens.
Guest:
Robert A. Pape is a professor of political science at the University of Chicago and the director of the Chicago Project on Security and Threats. His new book is “Our Own Worst Enemies: America in the Age of Violent Populism.”
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