Recently, a California man seeking to murder Justice Brett Kavanaugh was found hiding outside the judge’s home with a pistol, a knife, and an array of tactical gear. After being taken into custody, the man claimed he was planning to assassinate the justice in response to the recently leaked opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. This near-tragedy is a predictable endpoint of Democrats’ yearslong campaign to undermine the independence of the court through fear, coercion, and intimidation.

For several years, Democrats have threatened both individual justices and the court as a whole. In March 2020, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) sought to stir up a mob against Justices Gorsuch and Kavanaugh ahead of the decision in another abortion-related case, saying, “I want to tell you, Gorsuch. I want to tell you, Kavanaugh. You have released the whirlwind, and you will pay the price. You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions.” The would-be assassin took Schumer’s words to heart.