In the wake of the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, House Speaker Mike Johnson said Sunday that “I think this could be a turning point” for the country, while urging leaders to “turn down the rhetoric” amid a divisive political climate.
Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” that lawmakers should stop treating policy disputes as an “existential threat to democracy or the Republic,” while urging them to stop “calling one another names.”
“Calling people Nazis and fascists is not helpful,” Johnson said. “There are some deranged people in society, and when they see leaders using that kind of language so often now increasingly, it spurs them on to action. We have to recognize that reality and address it appropriately.”
The speaker told CBS News’ chief Washington correspondent Major Garrett that he’s “heartened to know” that lawmakers on both sides of the aisle “are stepping up and saying that and addressing it.”
Kirk was shot and killed at Utah Valley University last week in what authorities have described as a “targeted attack.” Authorities have arrested 22-year-old Tyler Robinson on charges of aggravated murder, obstruction of justice and felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, according to an inmate booking sheet from the Utah County Sheriff’s Office. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said Sunday that the suspect is not cooperating with authorities as they try to “to learn more about what that motive actually was.”
The speaker outlined how Kirk’s assassination has been felt on Capitol Hill, saying there’s “a mixture of anger and sadness and fear, frankly, on the part of a lot of people — it cast a large shadow across the country, and the nation’s capital.”
“My good friend Charlie would not want any of us to be consumed by despair,” Johnson said. “He would want us to go forward boldly, that was his message, and to do it in love. And I think that, I hope, is the message that continues in the days ahead.”
Johnson described the efforts to honor Kirk’s memory in Congress, including a moment of prayer and silent reflection on the House floor Wednesday, shortly after Kirk’s death, while outlining that a prayer and reflection vigil will be held at the Kennedy Center in Washington later Sunday, along with a moment for members’ reflection and prayer that he will lead Monday.
“This will continue,” Johnson said. “I think that the country needs to see leaders in Congress and leaders with platforms all around the country speaking truth and bringing calm to the situation.”
Johnson invoked President Abraham Lincoln’s appeal to the nation’s “better angels,” while urging the adoption of “the manner of Charlie Kirk.”
“While he loved vigorous debate and he believed in the free marketplace of ideas and advancing truth boldly, he also was motivated by love for his fellow man, because he never hated the person on the other side of the table,” Johnson said. “And I think everyone would do well to be reminded of that model.”
The speaker said he’s been speaking with members in recent days about the fear that those holding public office are feeling in the aftermath of Kirk’s death and has been “trying to calm the nerves to assure them that we will make certain that everyone has a level of security that’s necessary.”
Meanwhile, the White House is sending a $58 million request to Congress to increase security for the executive and judicial branches in the wake of Kirk’s assassination, multiple sources familiar with the matter told CBS News on Saturday. And the Trump administration expressed support for increased funding to protect congressional lawmakers, but may defer to the legislative branch.
Johnson said House GOP leaders are “evaluating all the options” to ensure resources will be available for lawmakers’ residential security and personal security. And he added that “it does take a certain measure of courage to step out and to lead,” saying first responders, members of the military and political figures do it every day.
