House Speaker Michael Johnson vowed Sunday to carry Charlie Kirk’s message forward and defend his memory against the individuals who have celebrated his assassination and mischaracterized his legacy.
Mr. Johnson, Louisiana Republican, said elected leaders must also do their part to “turn the rhetoric down.”
“Our friend Charlie would not want us to be consumed by despair; he would want us to carry his message forward, and that is exactly what is going to happen,” Mr. Johnson said on “Fox News Sunday.”
Mr. Kirk, co-founder of Turning Point USA, was shot to death Wednesday while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University. The killing has led to an uprising of support across the nation and the globe for the 31-year-old conservative activist.
Law enforcement officials arrested Tyler Robinson, 22, of Utah, on charges of murdering Mr. Kirk. Mr. Robinson is expected to be formally charged this week.
Law enforcement continues to probe what motivated the shooting suspect.
Mr. Johnson and other lawmakers plan to hold a candlelight vigil Sunday night to honor Mr. Kirk.
Mr. Johnson said shooting has cast a pall over the nation and Capitol Hill, where Republican and Democratic lawmakers understand that “people have got to stop framing simple policy disagreements in terms of existential threats to our democracy and all these phrases you hear all the time.”
“You can’t call the other side fascists and enemies of the state and not understand that there are some deranged people in our society who will take that as cues to act and do crazy and dangerous things,” the House speaker said.
Mr. Johnson said Mr. Kirk was a Christian who “loved” the people he debated and understood that Scripture teaches “our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and spiritual darkness.”
“Charlie understood, he put on, as it says in Ephesians 6, the full armor of God to go out and advance truth and do it in love, and that is exactly what he did,” Mr. Johnson said. “That is what his legacy stands for.”
Mr. Johnson also said his team is taking House members’ security concerns seriously.
“We are looking at all options to increase security measures so that they have plenty of coverage for their residential security and personal security as well,” he said.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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