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EEUU. President Donald Trump said that people aligned with the political left are already facing investigations in the wake of the assassination of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk.
The 31-year-old founder of Turning Point USA was shot and killed while speaking at Utah Valley State University on Sept. 10.
Authorities arrested suspect Tyler Robinson, 22, on multiple charges, including aggravated murder. It is alleged that Robinson fatally shot Kirk from a rooftop on the campus.
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Trump’s remarks came as Republicans in Congress pressed for a formal probe into left-leaning groups.
Trump, speaking to reporters before leaving Bedminster, New Jersey, for Washington on Sept. 14, said the country had lost “a great person” in Kirk.
“It’s a very sad weekend in the sense that we lost a great person,” Trump said.
When asked by a reporter whether any groups were under scrutiny, Trump said investigations were already underway.
“Well, the problem is on the left,” Trump said.
“If you look at the agitators, you look at the scum that speaks so badly of our country, the American flag burnings all over the place, that’s the left. That’s not the right. We’ll see. We’ll be announcing. They’re already under investigation. You know, they’re already under major investigation. A lot of the people that you would traditionally say are on the left [are] already under investigation.”
When asked whether his administration has revoked any visas of foreigners celebrating Kirk’s death, Trump said no, but added that his administration has begun “looking at names” of such individuals.
“We don’t like that, that’s not right,” Trump said.
“We wouldn’t celebrate if something happened on their side, and we don’t. These are sick people. These are really deranged people.”
Regarding the investigation of those “on the left,” Trump did not elaborate on which groups or individuals he was referring to. However, his comments echoed a vow he made shortly after Kirk’s death to track down “each and every one of those who contributed” to the assassination and to other acts of political violence.
In Utah, state and federal officials confirmed they are probing whether any groups provided support to the alleged gunman or had prior knowledge of his plans.
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican, said a motive has not been established, but acknowledged Robinson identified with the political left and had expressed a dislike of Kirk.
Cox told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday that Robinson came from a conservative family, but had drifted into “very different” ideological territory, influenced by online subcultures.
“Friends have confirmed that there was kind of that deep, dark internet, the Reddit culture, and these other dark places of the internet where this person was going deep,” Cox said.
On Capitol Hill, a group of House Republicans is demanding the creation of a select committee to investigate what they call “the radical left’s assault on America and the rule of law.”
In a Sept. 11 letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) and more than a dozen colleagues argued that Kirk’s assassination reflects a broader pattern of ideological violence.
They called for a panel with subpoena power to trace the “money, influence, and power” of nonprofits, donors, media outlets, and public officials allegedly enabling unrest.
“The patterns are undeniable: we are witnessing a sustained breakdown of law and order, fueled not by chance, but by anti-American ideology,” the lawmakers wrote.
Legal scholars told The Epoch Times that the tragedy could either galvanize leaders to cool partisan tensions or push the nation deeper into polarization. (AP)
