SC congresswoman says she too was targeted by man accused of threatening to kill Trump

 

U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace talked to reporters at the Greenville County
GOP convention at the Greenville Convention Center on Monday April 14, 2025.
(Photo by Mark Susko/Special to the SC Daily Gazette)

Written by Shaun Chornobroff, South Carolina Daily Gazette 
April 15, 2025

GREENVILLE-- (SC Daily Gazette) U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace told Republicans at a county convention Monday that she was among the targets of a Pennsylvania man charged last week with threatening to kill President Donald Trump and other officials.

The 1st District congresswoman said U.S. Capitol Police called her while she was on her way to Greenville to inform her that Shawn Monper threatened to kill her too in an online post in January.

U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace spoke at the Greenville
County GOP convention at the Greenville Convention
 Center on Monday April 14, 2025.
(Photo by Mark Susko/Special to the SC Daily Gazette)

“He wanted to put a bullet in my head. No way!” the Charleston County Republican told about 1,000 people gathered at the Greenville County GOP convention.

Monper, 32, of Butler, Pennsylvania, was arrested last Wednesday and accused of threatening to kill Trump, Elon Musk, immigration agents, and others, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Friday.

According to the release, threats from a self-identified “Mr. Satan” were posted on YouTube between Jan. 15 and April 5. They included a Feb. 17 threat to kill Trump, Musk, all of Trump’s appointed directors and “anyone who stands in the way.”

Mace told the crowd she was the only known member of Congress named in the threats.

Fox News was first to report Monday evening that Mace was a target of the threats. Mace then told reporters from the Gazette and other outlets at the convention before taking the stage to address the crowd as a guest speaker.

“I will not back down to the threats,” Mace told reporters. “I will not back down to the intimidation. I will not back down to anyone who is threatening to put a bullet in my head.”

Friday’s release from the Department of Justice did not include any specific threat against Mace. Asked for additional details, a Mace spokeswoman referred only to the Fox News report, which cited an unnamed source.

The U.S. Capitol Police responded to the Gazette’s questions Tuesday morning, but only to say they do not comment on “potential investigations” for safety reasons.

According to the Department of Justice, the FBI was alerted to the threats April 8, and the internet activity of “Mr. Satan” came from Monper’s home. The statements included claims of stocking up on guns and ammunition to “do a mass shooting.”

Trump survived a pair of assassination attempts last year, the first at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July, when the gunman’s bullets killed one attendee, seriously injured two others, and hit Trump’s ear before Secret Service agents killed him.

Mace, who is considering a 2026 bid for governor, told reporters she’s close to a decision. She said she’s spoken to Trump about running to replace term-limited Gov. Henry McMaster and knows the president’s endorsement isn’t guaranteed.

“I don’t manage what he does or how he does it or who he endorses,” she said. “But if I do run, I’ll be working very hard to get his support.”

Mace, first elected to represent the coastal 1st District in 2020, cast herself to the GOP faithful in South Carolina’s largest county as someone who will bring Trump’s “America first” agenda to South Carolina “from the state all the way down to the local level.”

Winning over voters in ruby red Greenville County, which is split between the 3rd and 4th congressional districts, is key to any statewide race.

“I will stand up for Donald Trump and J.D. Vance every day of the week. I don’t care,” she told the crowd.

“I will never stop fighting for Donald J. Trump,” she said to conclude her speech, calling to voters’ mind the moment of defiance when Trump mouthed “fight” and pumped his fist after getting shot in Pennsylvania.

Steve Bannon gave the keynote speech at the
Greenville County GOP convention at the
Greenville Convention Center on Monday April 14, 2025.
(Photo by Mark Susko/Special to the SC Daily Gazette)

 
She left the stage to a standing ovation.

Next to take the stage as guest speaker was state Treasurer Curtis Loftis, who is trying to hold on to the job he first won in 2010. Despite senators’ efforts to remove him from office, Loftis said emphatically that he will seek a fifth term in 2026, and he’s willing to dig deep into his own pockets to do it.

The headliner was longtime Trump ally Steve Bannon, who spent four months in federal prison last year for defying a congressional subpoena. In October 2021, Mace was among nine Republicans who joined House Democrats in voting for a resolution calling for criminal contempt charges against Bannon.

“When Congress issues a subpoena, that individual must appear before Congress and invoke (executive) privilege” in person, she said at the time to explain her vote.

On Monday, she praised Bannon, telling the GOP crowd he too has “never backed down” and thanked him for “exposing all the corruption.”

Without mentioning her 2021 vote, she said, “I know now everything he says is true.”

Convention attendees told the Gazette they believe Mace definitely has a chance of becoming the next governor, citing her loyalty to Trump and name recognition.

A Winthrop Poll in February found that South Carolinians were more familiar with Mace than any other potential Republican candidate for governor they were asked about.

Mace has been criticized recently for not holding an in-person town hall to answer her constituents’ questions. She has repeatedly cited safety concerns as the reason why.

She held a virtual town hall last week, though she didn’t promote it or give advance notice.

“We will do in-person town halls as soon as it’s safe to do so,” she told reporters at the convention. “But I’ve had multiple bomb threats. I’ve had people threaten to blow up my office multiple times.”

If she runs, Mace is expected to be part of a crowded field that will potentially include Lt. Gov. Pam Evette, Attorney General Alan Wilson, U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman, and state Sens. Sean Bennett of Summerville and Josh Kimbrell of Spartanburg County.

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About the Author:

Shaun Chornobroff covers the state legislature for the South Carolina Daily Gazette. 

SC Daily Gazette is part of States Newsroom, the nation's largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.  

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