Charlie Kirk, once hailed as the new leader of conservative youth politics, co-founded Turning Point USA. Tragically, he was shot to death in the midst of a question-and-answer appearance on the campus of Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, Wednesday. A 31-year-old conservative social media influencer, known for his outspoken anti-LGBTQ, anti-woke, pro-Christian nationalist views, was shot in the throat. He was participating in the Power Vote Challenge, the East Coast leg of a nationwide campus debate tour.
Kirk’s inflammatory past is well-documented. He has attacked and insulted whole groups of people with inflammatory rhetoric, including women, people of color, Muslims, and the LGBTQ+ community. His bigoted rhetoric has rightfully made him a target for Republican and Democratic leaders alike. Even with this, he has risen to new heights for being the one who best mobilized the MAGA youth vote during the 2024 primary.
Kirk was in the midst of an energetic Q&A with conventiongoers when the shooting began. Footage of the incident soon went viral on platforms like TikTok and Twitter. This time, after this tragedy, everyone is talking. They are very deeply concerned about the growing violence in American political discourse.
“There is no place for violence in America, political or otherwise.” – Rebecca Kutler
In the wake of the shooting, federal authorities launched a civil rights investigation. The first persons of interest were arrested but later released. The motives behind the attack remain unclear. As the third anniversary of the event approaches, its legacy continues to inspire discussions about the perilous consequences of inflammatory political language.
Matthew Dowd—a political analyst for MSNBC—drew a considerable amount of fire after yesterday’s comments on Kirk’s extremist rhetoric. Dowd’s point was to stop the toxic cycle of politics as combat, which creates an intimidating and unproductive atmosphere. As he put it, “Hateful thoughts cause hateful words, which then cause hateful actions.”
“You can’t stop with these sort of awful thoughts you have and then saying these awful words and then not expect awful actions to take place.” – Matthew Dowd
In light of the incident, Dowd issued an apology for his earlier remarks, clarifying that they were not intended to blame Kirk for the attack. He also extended his “best wishes and condolences” to Kirk’s family and friends.
“My thoughts & prayers are w/ the family and friends of Charlie Kirk. On an earlier appearance on MSNBC I was asked a question on the environment we are in. I apologize for my tone and words. Let me be clear, I in no way intended for my comments to blame Kirk for this horrendous attack. Let us all come together and condemn violence of any kind.” – Matthew Dowd
Rebecca Kutler of MSNBC criticized the racist violence one more time. She expressed regret for any comments made by anyone in her network that were perceived as insensitive.