As news came in that Charlie Kirk, the conservative activist and founder of Turning Point USA, was shot while giving a speech at Utah Valley University, MSNBC blamed the murder on Kirk’s “hate speech.”
“We don’t know the full details of this yet,” MSNBC political analyst Matthew Dowd said. “We don’t know if this was a supporter shooting their gun off in celebration, so we have no idea about this. But following up what was just said, he’s been one of the most divisive, especially divisive younger figures in this, who is constantly sort of pushing this sort of hate speech or sort of aimed at certain groups. And I always go back to: Hateful thoughts lead to hateful words, which then lead to hateful actions.”
“And I think that’s the environment we’re in. You can’t stop with these sort of awful thoughts you have and then saying these awful words and not expect awful actions to take place,” he added.
Dowd was responding to MSNBC anchor Katy Tur, who described Kirk as a “divisive figure, polarizing, lightning rod, whatever term you want to use.” She also suggested the Trump administration would likely “use this as justification for something.”
Meanwhile, MSNBC politics reporter Allan Smith decried Kirk as having “been front and center on a lot of the more divisive social and cultural issues that have driven the MAGA movement,” blaming the shooting on Kirk’s political advocacy.
“I mean, you talk about trans rights, a lot of issues around racial justice,” Smith continued. “He has taken the sort of contrarian, more MAGA approach to a lot of these issues and he has, you know, he’s been pretty inflammatory in his rhetoric throughout the years.”
Kirk was giving a presentation at the university Wednesday afternoon during the first stop of his “American Comeback Tour.” According to online footage of the shooting, Kirk was shot in the neck approximately 30 minutes into his speech before falling down and being rushed out by his security team.
“The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead,” read a statement from President Donald Trump. “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”
