Swatting and bulletproof vests are the new norm for Supreme Court justices. Justices Elana Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett testified in front of House and Senate budget committees yesterday. During which, Barrett outlined in detail WHY more funds are immediately needed for the Justices.

In dramatic and rare testimony before Congress, Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett highlighted the growing concerns about judges’ security by recounting the moment she had to explain to her 12-year-old son why she brought home a bulletproof vest to protect herself from death threats.

Security threats “have required my children to think about and see things that children should not have to see or think about,” Barrett testified Tuesday.

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“I didn’t know how to respond because maybe I lack imagination, but I didn’t expect that performing this service was going to put me in the position of explaining to my children what a bulletproof vest was and why I had to wear one,” she told lawmakers.

Barrett emphasized how her life changed after the 2022 Dobbs decision was released, which overturned the historic ruling in Roe v. Wade, which boosted threats against her and the other conservative justices.

People have been emboldened to threaten people they don’t like. There are little to no consequences for their actions. And then, you have Chuck Schumer starting the ball rolling with his “reap the whirlwind” threats in 2020.  

He’s still never retracted his words. Yesterday, Susan Collins (who was a decisive vote for Kavanaugh) called him out.

https://twitter.com/bennyjohnson/status/2077103490854162626

And then the Dobbs leak happened two years later. The threats escalated, as did the violence. Which led to several of the Justices being handed bulletproof vests, and having their security details increased. 

There were requests made of the DOJ under Merrick Garland to increase presence, add additional layers of security, and work to keep protestors away from the Justices homes. Did any or all of that happen? Not hardly.

Worse was Garland's choice to not prosecute any of the protesters that showed up to all the conservative leaning justices.

— Twatter2.0 (@LibTwatter901) July 14, 2026

The Biden Administration didn’t care if anyone (conservative) got hurt or worse, killed.

They aren’t stopping. Justice Barrett testified about the swatting incident that happened… THIS MAY. 

Barrett, who was the target of a swatting incident in May, recounted how her and her family’s lives drastically changed following the leaked Dobbs decision in 2022, which ruled that abortion was not a constitutional right, causing threats on her life to intensify.

In that incident, someone falsely reported gunshots at her home, Barrett testified, saying her teenage son and his friends were the first to discover the street filled with police.

“I was very, very grateful that I had Supreme Court police outside my home because they were able to stop and meet with and explain to the county police that it had been a false alarm, and so the police did not actually attempt to enter our home,” Barrett said.

She also shared that her and other justices are receiving anonymous packages being sent in the name of Daniel Anderl, the 20-year-old son of U.S. District Court Judge Esther Salas, who was killed in 2020.

The gunman was an attorney posing as a delivery driver. Judge Salas was his target. Salas’ husband was seriously injured as well.

Her son …OPENED the door only to see a full SWAT team presence aiming their weapons at him. It is a flat miracle that no one was hurt during that incident. It’s an even greater miracle that Justice Kavanaugh’s would-be assassin got cold feet. 

Let me tell you something, if the investigations into these swatting incidents, the threats, and the anonymous packages are being slow-walked because of political animosity, that needs to be stopped ASAP. 

Unbelievably, there are some so-called conservatives calling for Justice Amy Coney Barrett to resign. 

She should resign. She is a mother of young children. She obviously fears for herself and doubtless for them. She is simply too young and in the wrong stage of life for a position that requires some real nerves of steel. https://t.co/vQK2rrfVYK

— Molly McCann Sanders (@molmccann) July 14, 2026

Molly, let me tell you something. She’s been dealing with these threats since 2022 or earlier. It requires courage, fortitude, and yes, nerves of steel, to stay on as a Justice knowing the left would do anything to see her gone from the Court. You calling for her to step down means the bad actors on the left would win. Do you REALLY want that? Do you?? 

Quite honestly, a 10% budget increase to ensure the safety and security of all of our Supreme Court Justices isn’t too much of an ask. If anything, I think they are asking for too little. 

In total, the Supreme Court is requesting roughly $89 million to cover personal security costs, which Kagan said is necessary given that the justices have experienced a 35% increase in threats just in 2026, compared to a 25% increase in threats the year prior. Kagan noted how recent growth in the budget can be entirely attributed to security expenses.

The security budget for the Justices needs to and MUST be increased. If only for the reason that the rabid militant wing of the left won’t stop. The Democrats won’t tell them to stand down. Which emboldens them even more. 

Swatting incidents and bulletproof vests are now a way of life for far too many judges across this country. The left owns this and the Democrats refuse to put a stop to it. 

Feature Photo Credit: Justice Barrett at LBJ Library in 2025 via Flickr, cropped and modified