Thirty-two House members, claiming they are "targets," are looking to add more personal security.
CBS News reported the representatives, including one Republican — Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich. — made their request in a letter to House leaders Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.
They are seeking to use their congressional allowances to augment their personal safety in their districts by hiring local police or other security personnel, according to CBS News.
The lawmakers have been left uneasy by the riot at the Capitol, the network news noted.
"Protecting members in their district is much harder because local law enforcement agencies are stretched and limited, and often don't have sufficient staffing or money to provide regular protection to members," they wrote in a letter. "Except for leadership, members do not have security details protecting them. The structure of the Capitol Police and the laws against threatening members of Congress were first crafted in a much different time when the threat environment was significantly lower.
"The increased level of threats has overwhelmed the Capitol Police Threat Assessment Section. Today, with the expansion of the web and social media sites, so much information about members is accessible in the public sphere, making them easier targets, including home addresses, photos, personal details about members' families, and real-time information on Member attendance at events."
The letter was written Reps. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., and Dean Phillips, D-Minn.
It comes as the Department of Homeland Security issued a national terrorism bulletin warning of the potential for lingering violence from people motivated by anti-government sentiment after President Joe Biden's election.
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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