In just the last two months, another alleged attempt to assassinate former President Donald Trump has surfaced.

Before sharing my thoughts on this event, I wanted to digest the coverage surrounding it, and unfortunately, my fears were confirmed. It appears that the situation involving a man aiming a rifle at Trump at a Florida golf course is not being viewed with as much concern as it should be.

The initial assassination attempt, which occurred in July when a shooter fired at Trump during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, barely missed injuring him and seems to have numbed people to such violent acts. Part of this desensitization is due to how narrowly Trump escaped serious harm during that encounter.

However, it also reflects our tendency to pay less heed as these events become routine. We must view each case of political violence as a vital alert for our country.

Political violence should not be accepted as the norm

None of this should be accepted as ordinary. None of it should be handled as if it were just part of the routine.

Just as school shootings fade in and out of the headlines, attempts on the lives of politicians are starting to lose their shock value. For years, we have been expected to brush off the reality of school shootings with minimal improvements in security measures, and we are beginning to do the same concerning politically driven violence.

Over recent years, we have witnessed numerous instances of political violence, including threats against Trump’s life, the assault on Paul Pelosi, attempts to harm Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, and the congressional baseball shooting, among others. All of these attacks were politically motivated, and there’s a good chance you might have overlooked some of them.

On top of this, we have seen numerous mass shootings, violent riots disrupting our cities, and blatant attempts to obstruct the peaceful transfer of power.

This behavior is far from normal, and the underlying tensions leading to these outbreaks of violence have, in part, been exacerbated by our political leaders. Most politicians likely do not endorse violence, but they must recognize when their rhetoric may be interpreted as incitement.

Can our elected officials act more responsibly?

While there will always be individuals inclined toward violence, we can work to de-escalate political tensions and avoid fueling this fire. Politicians need to be responsible in how they engage with their most fervent supporters.

This is not about assigning blame to any specific party or individual for the surge in political violence; everyone has contributed to it in some way.

Nevertheless, leaders are expected to guide, and when political tensions spiral, it is their duty to seek ways to defuse the situation. It should not take a tragedy to recognize the gravity of these issues; by then, it would be too late.

Whether it be the years of heightened rhetoric against Trump from Democrats or his unsubstantiated claims about election fraud, all of this needs to cease.

Unfortunately, this has not occurred. Trump has continued his baseless claims of a stolen election following the January 6, 2021, Capitol riots. Democrats have not ceased their strong criticisms of the Supreme Court after the threats against Justice Kavanaugh. Time and again, political violence has been responded to with escalation rather than restraint.

I call upon our leaders to stop treating any electoral defeat of their side as a Pandora’s box for democracy. We have witnessed the consequences of this mentality far too often.

Americans need to consider political violence significant every single time it occurs. We must ensure our leaders understand that living in a climate of political violence is unacceptable. No rational American wants to normalize such behavior.

It is our responsibility to convey that maintaining the current situation is intolerable.

Dace Potas is an opinion columnist for YSL News and a graduate of DePaul University, where he earned a degree in political science.