Rep. Derrick Van Orden said his Wisconsin office was targeted hours after an Immigration Enforcement and Customs agent fatally shot a Minnesota woman during an immigration operation.
The Wisconsin Republican said on social media the individual was “fueled by anti-ICE rhetoric — shouting slurs, pounding on our doors, and attempting to force his way inside” the office in Eau Claire.
“This is the direct result of Democrats’ violent rhetoric,” Mr. Van Orden said. “It must stop now.”
He shared an image of a car that had been painted with several phrases, including “Your turn!” and “F‑‑‑ ICE.”
“This is exactly what happens when Democrats spend years demonizing ICE, law enforcement, and Republicans,” Communications Director Grace Kim said in a statement.
“Their violent rhetoric has real-world consequences, and we saw how quickly words turn into intimidation and violence. This dangerous behavior must stop, now,” she said.
Ms. Kim told a local news channel that the individual screamed at staff Wednesday afternoon, called them “Nazis” and pounded on windows and the door, and staff exited the building through a secure location.
Police were notified, but the individual fled before the arrival of law enforcement.
Renee Nicole Good’s death at the hands of an ICE officer sparked nationwide anger, from both angles, as Republicans call it self-defense in a Democrat-inflamed environment and Democrats denounce ICE as a murderous agency and worse.
President Trump said the officer was hit and injured, and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said that the 37-year-old woman tried to run over the officer.
Mr. Van Orden agreed with this narrative, but added that she “never had to die.”
“The left’s constant demonization of our officers, calling them ’American Gestapo’ and vile slurs, is brainwashing and fueling this type of radicalization,” he said on social media.
The Homeland Security Department labeled the incident as domestic terrorism, but so did the Marathon County Democratic Party, though with a somewhat different point.
“The chaos that is created on a daily basis by this current administration brings nothing but tragedy and heartbreak to our countless families,” the party said in a statement. “This is a deliberate act of terrorism.”
