WASHINGTON (AP) — As House Speaker Mike Johnson gathered lawmakers this week to mourn Charlie Kirk, he summed up the grief felt by many on Capitol Hill — and the pervasive fear.

“For so many of us, it has felt as if the ground was shaken,” said Johnson, R-La.

The killing of Kirk, the prominent conservative activist and Turning Point USA founder, has unnerved lawmakers in both parties, amplifying their long-standing concerns about safety in a heated political climate where threats against political rivals and calls to violence have become frighteningly common.

Responding to those concerns, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., on Thursday night engineered unanimous passage of a measure that will allow senators to use money designated for their offices and staff for security purposes

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