# Are you worried about violence if Harris wins? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Tags:** trump, kamala-harris\ **Created:** [August 14, 2024, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716 "2024-08-14T20:45:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2024, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/141 "2024-08-21T23:53:10Z")
Yep, that’s the power of terrorism. Remember how people were acting during the DC Sniper attacks? ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/142 "2024-08-22T02:16:28Z")
I promise you, if Trump wins the country will burn. Mark the tape. The unrest will occur on a large scale from the left. If Harris wins, not so much. The right doesn’t have the network of extremists to enact nationwide upheaval like the progressive left wing crazies do. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/143 "2024-08-22T02:24:20Z")
> [@Uncommon\_Sense](#): > > The right doesn’t have the network of extremists to enact nationwide upheaval like the progressive left wing crazies do. Oh, you’re so funny. 😆 ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/144 "2024-08-22T02:26:49Z")
We shall see… ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/145 "2024-08-22T02:43:52Z")
That’s a mirror image of reality. The Left barely exists and is a _thoroughly_ beaten-down group of people. Their extremists are both marginalized and almost universally non-violent. The Left such as it is mainly sits around sniping at itself and waiting for an “inevitable world revolution” that will happen spontaneously. Somehow. As opposed to the Right, which is organized, motivated, well-funded, has support and permission from the authorities to _be_ violent, and convinced they can act as they please. They’ve been murdering people and getting away with it for decades, and not only have “network of extremists” but multiple such networks. Mainly because the government turns a blind eye towards their violence unless the body count gets too embarrassing. ---
**Author:** ![Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kolak_of_twilo/32/73_2.png) [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolak_of_Twilo)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/146 "2024-08-22T02:44:41Z")
As the saying goes, every accusation is a confession. Or what Der\_Trihs said. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/147 "2024-08-22T05:17:47Z")
> [@Uncommon\_Sense](#): > > The right doesn’t have the network of extremists to enact nationwide upheaval like the progressive left wing crazies do. [![](https://media.tenor.co/images/edf7c0e47e1eb7a66c32685cc4062872/tenor.gif) ](https://media.tenor.co/images/edf7c0e47e1eb7a66c32685cc4062872/tenor.gif) ---
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/148 "2024-08-22T08:05:31Z")
Not worried. Horse & Wagon isn’t as efficient as a sensible hybrid. Hear that gallop Gish-gallop shit a-comin faster than Paul Revere’s neighbors. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/149 "2024-08-22T12:35:45Z")
> [@Uncommon\_Sense](#): > > The unrest will occur on a large scale from the left. If Harris wins, not so much. The facts don’t seem to align… [https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2122593119](https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2122593119) _Much of this research suggests that compared to left-wing extremists, right-wing extremists may be more likely to engage in politically motivated violence._ ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/150 "2024-08-22T12:55:55Z")
> [@Uncommon\_Sense](#): > > If Harris wins, not so much. What happened the last time a Democrat won? ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/151 "2024-08-22T13:27:22Z")
I’m now seeing some related threads links at the bottom of threads like this, and interestingly enough one is about predictions in [2016](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/predictions-on-election-day-related-violence/769858/24). A fun blast from the past with some posters predicting Leftist violence if Clinton lost. Amazing thing. Gore’s win was snatched away by SCOTUS. HRC won the popular vote fairly handily but lost the EC. Rule of law respected. Trump lost and an insurrection was _actually_ attempted. People died. More would have died if not for the bravery and dedication of the capitol police against an overwhelming crowd acting on the direction of a wannabe dictator. We have history now. I don’t think there will be major violence if, hopefully _when_, Harris wins. But Trump will try to incite it. A few crazies might act out even. But lessons learned there will be police prepared. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/152 "2024-08-22T15:59:45Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > We have history now. > > I don’t think there will be major violence if, hopefully _when_, Harris wins. But Trump will try to incite it. A few crazies might act out even. But lessons learned there will be police prepared. You may find _some_ police in the rabble, which by the way is far more than “a few crazies”: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/NgVipFHzoD4/maxresdefault.jpg "Inside the Turbulent, Secret World of the AP3 Militia") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgVipFHzoD4) Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/153 "2024-08-22T16:13:52Z")
Article referenced in the video above: > **[Armed and Underground: Inside the Turbulent, Secret World of an American Militia](https://www.propublica.org/article/inside-secret-ap3-militia-american-patriots-three-percent)** > > Rounding up migrants. Lists of “friendly” sheriffs. Debating political assassinations. Internal messages reveal AP3's journey from Jan. 6 through the tumultuous lead-up to the 2024 election. One member predicts: “It’ll be decided at the ammo box.” > _The public’s impression of American militias is dominated by Jan. 6, 2021. Groups such as the Proud Boys had plotted to prevent the transfer of power from Trump to Joe Biden. They formed the vanguard of the mob that stormed the Capitol that day, according to the Department of Justice. Media coverage since has centered on the prosecutions of participants, with hundreds of rioters sent to prison._ > > _But despite the riot and its fallout, militias are far from extinct. AP3 has expanded at a dramatic pace since Jan. 6, while keeping much of its activity out of view. This rise is documented in more than 100,000 internal messages obtained by ProPublica, spanning the run-up to Jan. 6 through early 2024. Along with extensive interviews with 22 current and former members of AP3, the records provide a uniquely detailed inside view of the militia movement at a crucial moment._ > > … > > _In the view of many AP3 leaders, their chances of success hinged on building alliances with another heavily armed sector of society: police and sheriffs’ departments. If they couldn’t get the agencies to fight alongside them, they at least needed the cops to leave them alone. Many organizations like AP3 share this approach; a leaked [FBI counterterrorism guide](https://theintercept.com/2017/01/31/the-fbi-has-quietly-investigated-white-supremacist-infiltration-of-law-enforcement/) from 2015 noted that investigations of “militia extremists” often find “active links to law enforcement officers.” The details of those efforts rarely come into public view._ Stranger ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/154 "2024-08-22T16:35:55Z")
I am not doubting these groups exist and that they have a fair number of individuals in them who are also members of the police. The question is if they will after this election, assuming a Trump loss, attempt violence in response. And what the police as an organization on duty will be prepared for and respond to. I do NOT expect more than a few to answer Trump’s call for insurrection this time. I DO expect the police will be well prepared for any violent protests and insurrection attempts. FWIW some here were expecting a police riot during the DNC on brown protesters. There is no doubt that there are many racists on the CPD who, on their own time and during routine stops would be prone to beat up on a person of color. But as part of an organization prepared for an event with clear marching orders and rules of engagement they behaved just fine. At some point we get to the scene in Tommy of “… forsake you better still.” ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/155 "2024-08-22T22:26:51Z")
> [@Railer13](#): > > What happened the last time a Democrat won? No unrest. The right had a peaceful march to the Capitol building and then embarked on sight-seeing tours. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/156 "2024-08-26T11:54:53Z")
> [@Uncommon\_Sense](#): > > I promise you, if Trump wins the country will burn. Yup, Trump will destroy the country. We are trying to avoid that. ---
**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/157 "2024-08-26T12:20:12Z")
> [@CairoCarol](#): > > I take your point, but I also think that it can’t hurt to take whatever steps are possible to mitigate “stop the steal” nonsense. I’m such a Girl Scout - my motto really is “be prepared.” I just don’t know what the people who operate the election infrastructure can do to show people that fraud is rare. Prevention is better than fighting back. I think you’re being too pessimistic _because_ this time we will be prepared. On January 6 (is it the same date very election?), I expect a thick perimeter of Guardsmen with machine guns and instructions to maintain the perimeter by any means necessary. The “patriots” would be in for a world of hurt for the rest of their short lives. Combine that with what did occur last time. Hundreds of people went to prison, and Dear Leader did nothing to protect them. Trump is trying to cure that now with all his patriot talk and promises of pardons. It’s too late. The movement remains but the fever pitch has passed. All the cosplayers would just as soon not get killed or go to prison. Any belief in a glorious outcome is largely gone. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/158 "2024-08-26T14:13:45Z")
> [@Stratocaster](#): > > I expect a thick perimeter of Guardsmen with machine guns and instructions to maintain the perimeter by any means necessary. Exactly. Commander-in-Chief of the National Guard in DC is the sitting president, who will still be Joe Biden at that point. Besides, I seriously doubt if Loser Donald will be calling for a DC rally. Hard to coordinate that when you’re not in the White House. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/159 "2024-08-26T15:11:12Z")
> [@Stratocaster](#): > > On January 6 (is it the same date very election?) Yes, per the Electoral Count Act: > **[3 U.S. Code § 15 - Counting electoral votes in Congress](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/3/15)** > Congress shall be in session on the sixth day of January succeeding every meeting of the electors. The Senate and House of Representatives shall meet in the Hall of the House of Representatives at the hour of 1 o’clock in the afternoon on that day, and the President of the Senate shall be their presiding officer. January 6th at 1 PM to be precise, by law. ---
**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716/160 "2024-08-26T15:15:19Z")
Thanks. I thought it might be one of those “first Tuesday in January” deals. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-worried-about-violence-if-harris-wins/1005716.md?page=9)