Calls To Ensure Brett Kavanaugh's Security After Armed Man Visited His Home Spur Memes And Comparisons To School Shootings

After a gunman attempted to kill Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh at his Maryland home yesterday before ultimately turning himself in, politicians and citizens on social media argued and memed heavily about gun control and political violence in the United States.

The gunman, armed with a legally purchased Glock sidearm, a knife and zip ties, turned himself in by calling 9-1-1 from the suburb where Kavanaugh lives and reporting suicidal thoughts. He told the police that his plan was to break into the house and kill Kavanaugh because of positions the conservative Supreme Court justice has staked out on abortion and gun control, and a desire to give his own life “a purpose,” according to reporting by the New York Times.

Worth noting: The man arrested outside Kavanaugh’s house was “thinking how to give his life a purpose.” At 26.

There’s a real mental health crisis with young men in this country pic.twitter.com/bxJgclg1oe

— John Hasson (@SonofHas) June 8, 2022

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell called for new measures to increase security for Supreme Court justices shortly after the news began sweeping the internet.

Mitch McConnell heard an 11yo say she smeared herself with her friend’s blood to try and survive.

So he immediately ran to the Senate floor to demand they take action to protect Brett Kavanaugh.

— Santiago Mayer (@santiagomayer_) June 8, 2022

Many left-leaning commentators mocked conservatives for calling for more protections for Kavanaugh, pointing out the lack of action by conservatives to address the Uvalde, Texas shooting and the security of schoolchildren. Some ironically proposed measures to defend Kavanaugh, which some Republicans had proposed to defend schools, including putting "one door in his house and arming the Justice’s family members." Others offered “thoughts and prayers.”

JUST PUT ONE DOOR ON KAVANAUGH’S HOUSE AND ARM HIS FAMILY PROBLEM SOLVED https://t.co/aqu6BK7WuZ

— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) June 8, 2022

We’re very sorry to hear about Brett Kavanaugh's current troubles. We offer our thoughts and prayers for the entire Kavanaugh family during this difficult period. Now is not the right time to have a policy debate, so let’s not politicize the issue.

— 𝕊𝕦𝕟𝕕𝕒𝕖_𝔾𝕚𝕣𝕝 (SundaeDivine) June 9, 2022

Just give Kavanaugh a bullet proof backpack filled with thoughts and prayers. If it’s good enough for our children then it’s good enough for Brett. #FreshWords

— Ashley Loves Diversity ☮️ ✨♥️🌱🌏🥁🌈🕶🐝🌊✨ (@KuckelmanAshley) June 8, 2022

A few used the opportunity to push back against Kavanaugh’s politics and political leanings as the story trended on Twitter throughout the day.

Brett Kavanaugh’s safety, privacy and well-being were violated today.

Now he can relate to what it’s like being a woman with him on SCOTUS.

— Kate 🤍🇺🇸🌻🇺🇦 (@ImSpeaking13) June 8, 2022

Some conservatives on Twitter also objected to media coverage of the event, arguing that it was under-reported or downplayed by certain outlets.

The attempted assassination of Justice Kavanaugh isn’t mentioned until the 20th page of @nytimes print edition today. We know the media is dishonest, but even media critics are nonexistent. It’s all complete rigged bullshit.

— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) June 9, 2022

On the other side, many pushed back on that narrative as the viral debate continued spiraling into today.

People saying that the media would be making a much bigger deal about the person who wanted to kill Brett Kavanaugh if the person wanted to kill a liberal justice SEEM TO HAVE MISSED that a person who killed a fed judges on had a file on Sotomayor. https://t.co/WmTXjWWnpG

— Elie Mystal (@ElieNYC) June 9, 2022

Amid the expansive coverage and discussions around the web, some right-wing commentators blamed the rhetoric of Democratic leadership during Kavanaugh’s charged confirmation hearing, particularly a clip of Democrat Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer from 2020.

And this is why Democrat Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer explicitly and directly threatening Kavanaugh and Gorsuch from the steps of the Supreme Court in 2020 was so dangerous. https://t.co/jK4LnsgV3s

— Mollie (@MZHemingway) June 8, 2022

Someone going to Justice Kavanaugh’s home to murder him is the result of increasingly deranged rhetoric from Democrat politicians. pic.twitter.com/xeOZglGvlM

— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) June 9, 2022

The assassination attempt comes at a particularly charged moment, as Americans respond to a spate of mass shooting events and the possible overturning of Roe v. Wade, two questions of constitutional rights that Kavanaugh and his colleagues on the bench will have a significant say in deciding.