Republicans Declare 'War' On Liberals In Response To Kirk's Death

Summary

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Episode Overview

Title: Republicans Declare 'War' On Liberals In Response To Kirk's Death
Date: September 17, 2025
Host/Panel: Tamara Keith, Elena Moore, Stephen Fowler

This episode of The NPR Politics Podcast discusses how Republicans and the conservative movement are responding to the assassination of Charlie Kirk, the prominent MAGA activist and founder of Turning Point USA. The panel analyzes the intensity of rhetoric from the right, implications for the Republican Party, reactions from party leadership and the White House, concerns about political violence, and what Kirk’s death means for the future of youth-oriented GOP activism. The episode further explores the nascent policy responses and what to watch for moving forward.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Immediate Conservative Response

• Aggressive Rhetoric:

  • Steve Bannon immediately escalated tensions, framing Kirk’s assassination as part of a "war" with the left.
    • “Charlie Kirk was a casualty of the war and that's a war against the left.” — Stephen Fowler relaying Bannon's words [01:34]
  • Rep. Derek Van Orden invoked language of retribution, posting:
    • “Yesterday is the reason I will be at war for the next 20. I will not allow these leftist scumbags to take my country.” [01:34]

• Blame Beyond the Shooter:

  • The right’s online spaces widely treated Kirk’s death not as an isolated event, but as evidence of broader left-wing hostility, amplifying "war footing" and calls for action [02:37].

White House & GOP Leadership Response

• More Moderate, Yet Stern Rhetoric:

  • Vice President J.D. Vance hosted Kirk’s memorial podcast with several Trump administration officials, using less extreme rhetoric but urging accountability:
    • “So when you see someone celebrating Charlie's murder, call them out in hell.” — JD Vance via Stephen Fowler [03:20]
    • “Call their employer.” — Elena Moore, summarizing calls for public shaming [03:24]
    • “We don't believe in political violence, but we do believe in civility.” — JD Vance [03:25]

• Personal Connection:

  • “This is personal. Charlie Kirk was very close with a lot of these people… Vance even credited Kirk with… him becoming the Vice President.” — Tamara Keith [03:29]

• Retributive Actions Online:

  • The conservative movement, especially Kirk’s base, started targeting individuals online who spoke ill of Kirk, sometimes engaging in doxxing and online shaming campaigns [04:16].

Questions of Political Violence

• Difficult Attribution:
  • Elena Moore notes, “it’s just hard to attribute the rise in violence to a single cause,” and reminds listeners NPR polling shows Americans, across the spectrum, overwhelmingly oppose political violence [04:16].
• Muddy Facts Around Shooter’s Motive:
  • The alleged shooter, Tyler Robinson, 22, is described in charging documents as “leaning more to the left”; his mother and prosecutors cited texts expressing hatred for Kirk.
    • “Some hate can’t be negotiated out.” — Tyler Robinson, via charging docs [05:34]

The Future of Kirk’s Movement

• Turning Point USA’s Uncertainty:

  • Kirk was unique in galvanizing youth conservatives. Questions abound over who, if anyone, can step up.
  • “No one person is likely able to fill the shoes of this young organizer.” — Elena Moore [07:40]
  • High-profile surrogates (Vance, Susie Wiles) are stepping in or advocating continuation of Kirk’s work.

• Sustained Youth Mobilization:

  • Notably, there’s a surge of interest posthumously:
    • “Executive producer…says they've received 37,000 applications to start chapters around the country.” [08:34]
    • Existing presence: 800+ chapters nationally.

• Strategic Viewpoint:

  • Susie Wiles, Trump’s Chief of Staff:
    • “Now we have three and a half years to convert Trump voters to being Republicans so that in 2028 we can keep the White House, the House and the Senate.” — [08:25]

Policy Implications & Administration Response

• White House Moves to Target Left-Wing Nonprofits:

  • President Trump and Deputy Chief Stephen Miller discuss "going after a network of left wing nonprofit entities."
  • There’s talk of applying racketeering laws and further scrutiny of protest organizations, referencing past BLM protests as examples.
    • “These protests are not organic, but that they are bought and paid for by non-profit organizations.” — Tamara Keith [09:30]
  • However, the administration is reportedly still navigating the First Amendment hurdles to any new enforcement [11:04].

• Broader Political Context:

  • Economic anxieties, immigration policy battles, and looming government shutdown challenges mean the administration may struggle to follow through strongly on new crackdowns [11:28].

What to Watch

• Funeral and Turnout:

  • President Trump is set to attend Kirk’s funeral, making it a major political event [12:08].
  • “Are there figures that [attendees] admire, who they liken to Kirk? Is that someone like Vance or President Trump’s son, Don Jr.?” — Elena Moore [12:19]

• GOP Youth Engagement:

  • Recent drops in enthusiasm among young Trump voters (Pew: from 90% in Feb. to high 60% in Aug. 2025) — will Kirk’s death unify or further fragment this base? [12:19]

• Presidential Tone:

  • Will Trump’s speech at the funeral focus on unity or double down on retribution?
    • “He didn't have a unifying message for the country as a whole ... What will the president's message be? Will it be fight? Will it be retribution? Or will it be something about healing the country?” — Tamara Keith [13:15]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Charlie Kirk was a casualty of the war and that's a war against the left.” — Steve Bannon via Stephen Fowler [01:34]
• “Yesterday is the reason I will be at war for the next 20. I will not allow these leftist scumbags to take my country.” — Rep. Derek Van Orden tweet via Stephen Fowler [01:34]
• “Call their employer.” — Elena Moore summarizing right-wing calls for public shaming [03:24]
• “We don't believe in political violence, but we do believe in civility.” — JD Vance as relayed by Stephen Fowler [03:25]
• “No one person is likely able to fill the shoes of this young organizer. It's going to be many people.” — Elena Moore [07:40]
• “Now we have three and a half years to convert Trump voters to being Republicans so that in 2028 we can keep the White House, the House and the Senate.” — Susie Wiles via Tamara Keith [08:25]
• “These protests are not organic, but that they are bought and paid for by non-profit organizations.” — Tamara Keith, conveying the administration’s position [09:30]
• “He didn't have a unifying message for the country as a whole, which is atypical for a president, but not necessarily atypical for this president.” — Tamara Keith [13:15]

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Timestamps of Key Segments

• 01:12 — Framing: Republicans’ response to Kirk's death
• 01:34 — Bannon & Republican firebrand rhetoric
• 03:20 — JD Vance, White House response and calls for “civility”
• 04:16 — Doxxing and social media retaliation on the right
• 05:34 — Shooter’s profile and evidence of motive
• 07:40 — The future of Turning Point USA and conservative youth mobilization
• 08:25 — Susie Wiles on electoral transformation post-Kirk
• 09:30 — White House policy: crackdown on left-wing nonprofits
• 11:28 — Broader Trump admin priorities and capacity to follow through
• 12:08 — Funeral as next major event & future of movement
• 13:15 — Watching for President Trump’s tone and the risk of deepening divides

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Conclusion

The episode draws a vivid picture of an already polarized political landscape now thrown into further turmoil by Kirk's assassination. With intensifying language from the right and new policy proposals to counter leftist groups, the podcast lays out crucial fault lines shaping the GOP’s direction. The future of youth MAGA organizing is uncertain, but the raw emotional and strategic response illustrates how a single violent event can quickly become a defining, galvanizing—and potentially divisive—moment. As the funeral approaches, all eyes remain on whether the GOP unifies or fractures further, and what message President Trump will send at Kirk’s memorial.

Transcript

[Elena Moore]

Military commanders, intelligence officials, diplomatic power players. They know things you may not about where the world is headed. And we will pull back the curtain on what they're thinking on sources and methods, NPR's new national security podcast, Our team will help you understand America's shifting role in the world. Listen to Sources and Methods from npr. This is John from Greenwood, Indiana. Currently I'm in London and right now I'm at the Tottenham Spurs Stadium.

[Tamara Keith]

This podcast was recorded at 1.27pm on Wednesday, 17 September.

[Elena Moore]

Things may have changed by the time you hear this, but I'll still be loving the game, the most beautiful game of English football.

[Tamara Keith]

Oh my God, that sounds so epic.

[Elena Moore]

Football.

[Tamara Keith]

Hey there. It's the NPR Politics Politics podcast. I'm Tamara Keith. I cover the White House.

[Elena Moore]

I'm Elena Moore. I cover politics.

[Stephen Fowler]

And I'm Stephen Fowler. I also cover politics.

[Tamara Keith]

Today on the show, how conservatives are responding to the assassination of MAGA activist Charlie Kirk and what that means for the direction of the Republican Party and the future of the movement Kirk led. Stephen, there have been a lot of reactions, but I want you to start by talking about people like Steve Bannon and some of the strongest language that.

[Stephen Fowler]

We'Ve seen in the immediate aftermath of the shooting. There was some very aggressive responses and reaction from very online corners of the right. You had Steve Bannon, the one time Trump aide who's been sort of a MAGA media whisperer, take to his show, the War Room podcast and say that Charlie Kirk was a casualty of the war and that's a war against the left. The day after Kirk was shot, Wisconsin Republican Congressman Derek Van Orden tweeted, quote, today we remember Those lost on September 11, 2001. It was the reason I went to war for over 20 years. Yesterday is the reason I will be at war for the next 20. I will not allow these leftist scumbags to take my country. So you just had this very aggressive posture online from the corner of the Internet where Charlie Kirk had a lot of sway of people arguing that it wasn't just one person who shot and killed Charlie Kirk, but rather a larger symptom of the, quote, unquote, left doing this. And that's why they have this footing.

[Elena Moore]

But it wasn't even just, you know, the MAGA media world that was talking about this. We saw, you know, related rhetoric coming from the White House. I mean, just earlier this week, Vice President J.D. vance took over the host chair and sat in for Charlie Kirk and hosted a two hour long podcast remembering the 31 year old conservative activist. And he talked to some really key Trump officials, from, you know, White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt to Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller to Chief of Staff Susie Wiles. We should say there was not as extreme rhetoric used by these people. Here's how Vance put how people should respond.

[Stephen Fowler]

So when you see someone celebrating Charlie's murder, call them out in hell.

[Elena Moore]

Call their employer.

[Stephen Fowler]

We don't believe in political violence, but we do believe in civility.

[Tamara Keith]

Yeah. And I think it's just really important to note here that for all of those people who appeared on the Charlie Kirk podcast with J.D. vance and for President Trump, for J.D. vance himself, for many people on the right, this is personal. Charlie Kirk was very close with a lot of these people. Vice President Vance even credited Kirk with one getting him into politics and then ultimately with him becoming the Vice President of the United States. But, Elena, I do want to talk to you about this idea of calling people out, call their employer. It almost seems as though there has been a retribution campaign in response to the response to the assassination.

[Elena Moore]

Yeah, I think so. I think almost immediately after Kirk was shot, we saw people online commenting and speculating on this violent attack. But. But then we also saw this real movement in the right wing circles to essentially dox people. I think folks have kind of disputed that term. But call people out and, you know, shame them online for their celebration of Kirk's death or just comments opposing him. We should say, you know, NPR polling shows that Americans across the political spectrum overwhelmingly oppose political violence. And though President Trump himself has been the target of political violence, he also commuted the sentences of January 6 rioters who attacked police and, you know, disrupted the transition of power in 2021. Also, it's just hard to attribute the rise in violence to a single cause.

[Tamara Keith]

Now, a lot of this conversation, Stephen, happened in the absence of clear information about the shooter. Stephen, we did learn more about the motivations of the alleged shooter, tyler Robinson, a 22 year old. In charging documents and also a press conference yesterday from prosecutors in Utah and law enforcement pointed to things he allegedly said that express a view that comes from the left.

[Stephen Fowler]

In the charging documents, we learned the alleged shooter's mother said that over the last year or so, Robinson had become more political and started to, quote, lean more to the left. And also in the documents, there's alleged text messages sent to the romantic partner that said, I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can't be negotiated out. Talking about Charlie Kirk.

[Tamara Keith]

All right, well, we're going to take a quick break and we'll have more on the Trump administration's response when we get back on how to Do Everything.

[Elena Moore]

We take your questions and find phenomenal.

[Stephen Fowler]

Experts to answer them. Because we love you.

[Elena Moore]

Elizabeth asked us, how do I exercise.

[Stephen Fowler]

While I'm in my car? And because we love Elizabeth, we rang up our favorite bodybuilder turned actor turned governor turned actor. Hello, Arnold, hello. We're here to talk to you today from npr.

[Elena Moore]

Very nice. Season two just dropped.

[Stephen Fowler]

Listen to how to Do Everything from.

[Elena Moore]

NPR on the Throughline podcast from npr. Immigration enforcement might be more visible now, but this moment didn't begin with President Trump's second inauguration or even his first, a series from Throughline about how immigration became political and a cash cow. Listen to Throughline in the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Stephen Fowler]

Hey, everybody, it's Ian and Mike, the hosts of how to Do Everything. That's the show where we take your questions and find overqualified experts to answer them. Alex asked us to write his out of office email message, but we don't.

[Elena Moore]

Know how to write.

[Stephen Fowler]

So we called up US Poet Laureate Ada Limon.

[Elena Moore]

Is this National Public Radio? Sort of.

[Stephen Fowler]

Technically, yes.

[Elena Moore]

Season two just dropped.

[Stephen Fowler]

Listen to the how to Do Everything podcast from npr.

[Tamara Keith]

And we're back. And we've been unpacking some of the messages coming from Republicans in the days since Charlie Kirk's death. Elena Kirk was a major player in the Republican Party's efforts to mobilize young voters. And he had an organization called Turning Point USA that was on both college and high school campuses all over the country. Is there a sense of what happens next with the movement that he built?

[Elena Moore]

I think that's the big question. It seems like right now the focus for a lot of the direct people in the Turning Point world is the funeral, which is this upcoming weekend. But we have, you know, seen Kirk's close colleagues and allies be very active online memorializing him and just talking about his legacy. And so this does come up. And people have been saying, you know, no one person is likely able to fill the shoes of this young organizer. It's going to be many people, which is why I think it was really striking to see someone like Vice President J.D. vance host his show for two hours. Even Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff, kind of alluded to this idea that Kirk had a really unique ability to bring in new Trump supporters. Here's how Wiles put it. Now we have three and a half.

[Tamara Keith]

Years to convert Trump voters to being Republicans.

[Stephen Fowler]

Sure.

[Tamara Keith]

So that in 2028 we can keep the White House, the House and the Senate.

[Elena Moore]

I should also just say that online, outside of the White House, we've seen Kirk supporters who are organizers, content creators, really put the focus on, don't let what happened to Kirk make you shy away, make you be more quiet about your views on campus. Stay organizing, stay active. And then on top of the conversation going on, we should also say there has been, at least initially, a real sense of engagement from people looking to get involved. There's, you know, according to the executive producer of the Charlie Kirk show, they've received 37,000 applications to start chapters around the country. Currently, there's more than 800 chapters on college campuses. So that's pretty notable. But who knows if it'll continue?

[Tamara Keith]

That is a lot of people responding, saying that they want to create more of what Charlie Kirk was doing.

[Elena Moore]

And on that point, Tam, from the White House perspective, has there been a policy response to Kirk's death?

[Tamara Keith]

Yeah, I think you could call it a policy response. The President and also his deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller, have talked about, as Stephen said, the idea of going after a network of left wing nonprofit entities. And the President was pressed on this. Stephen Miller was pressed on, like, what does that mean? And what Miller said is that they are interested in finding organizations that support or pay for protests, essentially. So that might include the protest that we saw earlier this year where the President called in the National Guard and then the military in Los Angeles against ICE raids. They point to attacks on Border Patrol agents, doxing campaigns and other things like that. They mentioned the Black Lives Matter protests back in 2020 as an example. Essentially, the President is pushing the idea that these protests are not organic, but that they are bought and paid for by nonprofit organizations. And they've talked about using racketeering laws to crack down on these organizations. And I think that until we see precisely what they intend to do, it's not going to be clear. The White House is trying to figure out how they can, within the constraints of the First Amendment, crack down on organizations on the left that they see as threatening.

[Elena Moore]

And it comes at a really interesting time again, because, you know, just a few years ago, the conversation was all about, I'm thinking of examples where really the Republican side, maybe the far right side, was more in the spotlight on this January 6th, or, you know, some of these more recent attempts of violence. So I think that, like, it's definitely a little bit of, you know, not completely fulsome history here.

[Stephen Fowler]

And it's also important to put this in the bigger context of Everything else happening in the administration. You have tariffs causing economic angst. You have people with concerns about how the Trump administration is enacting their immigration priorities. You have questions around the government shutdown that could be happening with government funding. And so none of this exists in a vacuum. And so while there may be some attention right now in this very moment, with the president saying we need to look at these far left groups, Stephen Miller saying we need to look at these groups, it's also not clear if they have the capital and the bandwidth to deal with this when there are many other plates spinning up in the air.

[Tamara Keith]

Yes, Elena, Charlie Kirk's funeral is this Sunday. President Trump, among many other administration heavyweights, will be there. What are you watching for?

[Elena Moore]

I want to see who shows up. I want to see if folks travel from around the country, if it's more local. And, you know, when talking to people, who do they see as the future of this movement, are there figures that they admire, who they liken to? Kirk? Is that someone like Vance or someone like President Trump's son, Don Jr. Both of which Susie Wiles on the podcast mentioned as the next generation. And so, yeah, I think that's one thing. I'm also just curious to see how young people continue to speak about the president. We have seen in recent months that among young Trump supporters, people who voted for Trump under the age of 35, Pew Research found that their approval of Trump's job performance has gone down considerably, some upwards of 90% in February, down to, you know, high 60% in August. So is this a moment where they unify a little bit because of this loss? We'll have to see.

[Tamara Keith]

Yeah. And I will be watching the president's rhetoric because in the immediate aftermath, he didn't have a unifying message for the country as a whole, which is atypical for a president, but not necessarily atypical for this president. And so this is another opportunity. What is going to be a widely watched speech, and what will the president's message be? Will it be fight? Will it be retribution? Or will it be something about healing the country?

[Elena Moore]

All right.

[Tamara Keith]

We're going to leave it there for now. I'm Tamara Keith. I cover the White House.

[Elena Moore]

I'm Elena Moore. I cover politics.

[Stephen Fowler]

And I'm Stephen Fowler. I also cover politics.

[Tamara Keith]

And thank you for listening to the NPR Politics podcast.

[Elena Moore]

Sources and Methods, the crown jewels of the intelligence community. Shorthand for how do we know what's real? Who told us? If you have those answers, you're on the inside. And NPR wants to bring you there, from the Pentagon to the State Department to spy agencies, listen to understand what's really happening and what it means for you. Sources and methods. The new National Security podcast from npr, Shortwave thinks of science as an invisible force showing up in your everyday life, powering the food you eat, the medicine you use, the tech in your pocket. Science is approachable because it's already part of your life. Come explore these connections on the Short Wave podcast from npr. A lot of short daily news podcasts focus on just one story, but right now you probably need more on up first from NPR, we bring you three of the world's top headlines every day in under 15 minutes. Because no one story can capture all that's happening in this big crazy world of ours on own. Its any given morning. Listen now to the UPVERSE podcast from NPR.