Kirk’s killing shakes Capitol Hill

WASHINGTON—Shortly after lawmakers learned of Charlie Kirk’s death, the House of Representatives held a moment of silence led by U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. But the moment turned sour when Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., asked for the chamber to offer up a prayer for Kirk and his family on the floor, prompting protests from the Democratic side of the aisle. After a moment of heated yelling on both sides, Johnson gaveled the chamber back to order.

“That type of rhetoric is the type of rhetoric that got [Kirk] killed,” Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., said afterward. Luna formerly worked for Kirk’s organization, Turning Point USA, after Kirk personally recruited her to become the organization’s National Director of Hispanic Engagement.

Numerous lawmakers expressed somber concern on hearing the news that the conservative commentator had been shot and killed. They conveyed not only a sense of alarm for the individual loss of life, but also a broader lament for the country.

“This is going to change things, I just kind of got to figure out exactly how,” Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, told reporters moments after the shooting. “This one hits. We should be able to speak freely and speak with passion about what we believe without it coming to that.”

Kirk, 31, was shot and killed while holding one of his routine, debate-style events at Utah Valley University on Wednesday. He spurred public discourse and engagement in politics through hundreds of such events and through Turning Point USA, a youth-focused organization he founded in 2012 that aligns closely with the views of the Trump administration. Kirk helped crystallize the political right’s messaging through viral debate clips on matters of culture, policy, and worldview. His killer is still at large.

Other lawmakers such as Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., believe this moment provides more evidence that Congress should entertain some form of gun control legislation.

“We have rates of gun violence that are 10 or 20 times higher than Canada, the European Union. So that’s something concrete that we can do to try to turn this nightmare around. Obviously, I don’t want people engaged in political violence of any kind—whether it’s with guns or knives or fists,” said Raskin, the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee. “We all have to denounce it, regardless of who the target is.”

Raskin also said that Kirk’s killing indicates a cultural problem. I asked him if lawmakers can turn the tide of public unrest from the top down.

“No,” Raskin said. “But we can display bottom-up forms of friendship and relationship. And I hope we can all do it. But it’s a very dark time with the political violence spiraling out of control and gun violence a threat to everybody in the country.”

In recent years, highly visible instances of political violence have increased, leading researchers at Princeton University to believe the trend will continue. The college’s Bridging Divides Initiative found that lone political vigilantes commit a growing proportion of the country’s political violence. In 2020, they accounted for well under 20% of acts of political violence. By November 2024, acts carried out by lone private citizens accounted for over 40%.

Two attacks on President Donald Trump, the assassinations of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson and Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman, an assault against the husband of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the April arson at the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion, and more happened in a span of less than three years.

In light of those instances, Rep. Joe Morelle, D-N.Y., believes Kirk’s death is another warning light that something is deeply wrong. Morelle is the ranking member of the Committee on House Administration, which, among other duties, manages the personal security of lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

“I worry every day about it,” Morelle said of security concerns. “Today is another stark reminder that political violence has become far too common in American society. We all have responsibility for this. We have to make sure to the greatest degree possible restore civility to our public discourse.”

In 2024, U.S. Capitol Police intercepted over 9,400 threats against lawmakers.

On a personal level, Wednesday’s news shocked those who, like Kirk, had shared in the Republican political movement of the past few years.

“Charlie Kirk was a good friend,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., said on Wednesday when asked about Kirk’s legacy. “I spoke at many of his events over the years. I knew him when he was a lot younger. Students all over the country would get very excited if they found out he was coming to their college campus. He brought in thousands of people to hear him speak. I’m at a loss for words.”

Roy, the lawmaker from Texas, echoed Greene’s comments and noted that the vigorous debate that Kirk practiced follows a tradition that stretches back to the country’s founding.

“Charlie—I’m going to have to say past tense right now—It’s just, Charlie was an incredible, deep thinker, you know, classical education type engagement on the things that we believe,” Roy said. “It’s important to have thoughtful discourse, discourse that makes you think, that forces you to go through logic and reasoning and not let you get away with sound bites. … We weakened the country today.”