CERL’s Professor Claire Finkelstein spoke with Australian Broadcasting Corporation about the recent assassination attempt on former President Trump, and the spike in violent rhetoric at U.S. political events:

“We have seen an increase in violent rhetoric around political events of all sorts, and the irony is that President Trump himself has fomented some of this violent rhetoric,” said Finkelstein. “I think this is a lesson for all of us: how dangerous it is for politicians to increase the violent rhetoric around their campaigns, around their causes.”

“This is a lesson that all governments are learning, the question is how to get there, and how we can learn to lower the temperature to respect political differences and make sure that everyone is safe in expressing those differences.”

Claire Finkelstein is the Algernon Biddle Professor of Law and Professor of Philosophy and Faculty Director of the Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law. Read her bio here. 

The views expressed here are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of any organization or university.