Barrett: Kirk assassination shows ‘political discourse has soured beyond control’

Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett said the nation is in a hazardous political environment after the fatal shooting of Turning Point USA co-founder Charlie Kirk.

“I think it is a sign of a culture that has — where political discourse has soured beyond control and something that we need to really pull back,” Barrett, a Trump appointee, said during a Monday appearance on “The Hugh Hewitt Show.”

“I mean, obviously, well, I assume that the person who murdered Charlie Kirk was mentally ill, but nonetheless, you know, to create a culture in which political discourse can lead to political violence is unacceptable in the United States,” she continued.

Since Kirk’s death, political division has been further sowed through online discourse that has blamed Democrats and Republicans for the national uptick in violence. 

In just more than a year, several prominent incidents have rocked politics. In April, a man attempted to burn down the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion while Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) and his family were inside. In June, Minnesota state lawmaker Melissa Hortman (D) and her husband were shot and killed at their home. Both incidents followed two assassination attempts on President Trump in 2024.

Coney Barrett said she was on Notre Dame’s campus when she learned of the Kirk shooting and that “the mood on campus was very somber.”  

“I mean, for the father of two young children and a husband to be murdered in cold blood was a tragedy and certainly sobering for the nation.”

The Supreme Court justice has been on tour promoting her new book, “Listening to the Law: Reflections on the Court and Constitution,” in which she encourages citizens to engage in healthy debates without attacking the other side. She credited Kirk for engaging those with opposing views frequently.

“I really hope that the assassination of Charlie Kirk is a turning point for us as a society where we look and see where things have come [and] the point at which we’ve come to in the United States…” Coney Barett said, citing “dangers” to society.

“One is to silo ourselves so that we don’t engage with the other side. You know, that’s the opposite of what Charlie Kirk did. He consistently engaged the other side. I think the other message in that passage is that when you do engage the other side, we’re engaging ideas and we’re not trying to attack or tear down people. And there’s a huge difference between the two.”