A GOP field office in Cedar Rapids was vandalized over the weekend, with a rock thrown through a window, leaving a nine-inch wide hole.
The Republican National Committee has condemned the vandalism, which it attributed to the “far left.” “Political violence of any sort has no place in a civil society,” an RNC spokesman said in a press release. “Monday’s vandalism against an RNC field office in Cedar Rapids underscores the dangers of unchecked rhetoric against ideological dissent – and its threat to Iowa Nice.”
Although it is not yet clear who is responsible for the vandalism and what motives were involved, it does fall into broader pattern of violence against conservatives and Republicans emerging in recent months. Last week, a restaurant in Wisconsin that was going to hold a fundraising event for a Republican congressional candidate had been vandalized with graffiti; an RNC Hispanic community center in Milwaukee had similarly been vandalized earlier this year.
And with the Supreme Court imminently set to issue its ruling on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization – which could result in the overturning of Roe v. Wade – far-left groups have also targeted over two dozen pro-life centers across the U.S. Iowa hasn’t been spared of pro-abortion violence – a pregnancy care center in Des Moines was vandalized earlier this month.
Republicans have criticized Democrats, including President Joe Biden and his White House officials, of adding fuel to the fire. In May, for instance, then-White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the White House “certainly encourage[s]” disruptive protest activity outside of the homes of conservative Supreme Court justices.
Republican officials remain hopeful, nevertheless, that the Cedar Rapids incident is just an anomaly rather than an indication of worsening tensions and violence.