Snap Insight: The assassination of Charlie Kirk leaves America at a turning point

SINGAPORE: United States President Donald Trump described it as a “dark day for America”, when conservative activist and steadfast Trump ally Charlie Kirk was shot and killed at Utah Valley University on Wednesday (Sep 10). 

Though he was not a household name outside of the US, Mr Kirk, 31, had been a key figure in spreading conservative ideals among American youth, with a massive online presence of 5.2 million followers on X and 73 million on TikTok. 

He was the co-founder of Turning Point USA, a right-wing political organisation with chapters in more than 850 colleges, and was well known for visiting left-leaning universities and inviting students to debate him on issues such as transgender rights and gun control.  

It was at one such outdoor event that the fatal shot was fired. As of the time of writing, there is still an ongoing manhunt for the shooter, whose identity and motives remain unknown.

While the news was met with a public outpouring of shock and grief, there are also growing demands among conservative personalities for a crackdown on leftist groups, who they blame for Mr Kirk’s assassination. America faces a crucial test as to whether its leaders and populace can bring down the temperature without broader violence.

BIPARTISAN GRIEF

Mr Kirk’s assassination marks the latest in what appears to be a rash of politically motivated killings in the US. 

In June, Vance Luther Boelter, a right-wing conspiracy theorist, murdered Minnesota state representative Melissa Hortman and her husband in their home. He also shot Minnesota state Senator John Hoffman and his wife, but both survived. Both lawmakers were from the Democratic Party.

One can also point to the two assassination attempts against then candidate Trump and the attack on Mr Paul Pelosi, husband of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, as signs of political violence creeping back into the American mainstream. It conjures images of the tumultuous 1960s, during which former President John F Kennedy, presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy and activists such as Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X were assassinated. 

The onus is now on political figures to lead the country to reject such political violence. And for the most part, they are doing so. 

Every former living president, from Mr Bill Clinton to Mr Joe Biden, has condemned the shooting. Many Republicans joined their Democrat colleagues in denouncing political violence. 

PARTISAN RAGE

The challenge, however, is that some conservative personalities are still viewing this tragedy through a partisan lens. Fox News personalities such as Sean Hannity accused “the Left” of “poisoning the minds” of Americans, while host Jesse Watters declared that “they are at war with us”. 

Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin alleged that “the hatred and the lies” from Democrats led to this shooting, framing Mr Kirk as someone who “went to campuses and … had an open dialogue”. Even Mr Trump suggested that Americans need to “confront the fact that violence and murder are the tragic consequence of demonising those with whom you disagree”.

Left unchecked, these allegations could easily stoke conservative outrage to a boiling point. Social media sites such as X and Truth Social were awash with calls for reprisals, with X owner Elon Musk declaring that “the Left is the party of murder” and activist Laura Loomer calling for the government to “shut down, defund and prosecute every single leftist organisation”. 

All this, even before the motives of the shooter were made known. 

Mr Kirk’s assassination threatens to tip the political conversation into a darker, more dangerous pit. Americans will need careful leadership to steer them towards healing instead of retribution, but it is unclear if anyone is up to the task.

Kevin Chen is an Associate Research Fellow with the US Programme at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore.