House Speaker Mike Johnson called on lawmakers to “lower the tension” on Capitol Hill in the aftermath of the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
“You will hear me, as I have always done, I’m trying to turn the temperature down around here. I always do that,” Johnson told reporters on Thursday.
An emotional Johnson said, “It still doesn’t feel real to me. Charlie Kirk was a good friend of mine.”
“I’ll continue to do what I’ve always aimed to do here, particularly at a time like this. We have members on both sides who are in a different mindset today compared to yesterday. This incident has rattled many,” he stated.
Several rank-and-file Republicans, however, only doubled down on their unsubstantiated claims that Democrats “caused” Kirk’s killing.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, makes remarks in the U.S. Capitol about the shooting of media personality Charlie Kirk, September 10, 2025.
Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, a close associate of Kirk, expressed to ABC News her unwavering stance on her heated debate on the House floor Wednesday night. The encounter ended with the Florida representative accusing Democrats who rejected a second prayer for Kirk, exclaiming, “Y’all caused this.”
“They use their national platforms to accuse us of being fascists, threatening their rights, and paint us as essentially malevolent in office,” Luna commented.
When inquired by ABC News Capitol Hill Correspondent Jay O’Brien if her accusations against Democrats exacerbated tensions, Luna retorted, “No, it’s about accountability. It highlights their actions.”
Kirk, aged 31, was tragically shot during an address at Utah Valley University on Wednesday. Authorities are actively searching for the shooter. The motive remains unclear, but Utah Governor Spencer Cox described the shooting as a “political assassination.”
Kirk’s murder sparked horror and condemnation from Republicans and Democrats.
But Luna dismissed the bipartisan response, and said she wouldn’t apologize for her comments on the House floor.
“What were the events leading up to this? What were the statements and rhetoric responsible? Every single person here knows that was the rhetoric that caused this. And I make no apologies for yesterday,” she said.
Rep Anna Paulina Luna, Republican of Florida, walks past members of the press after coming out of a closed door meeting with victims of Jeffrey Epstein at the US Capitol in Washington, September 2, 2025.
Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace went even further, saying she was “absolutely” blaming Democrats for Kirk’s killing.
“This is what the left has done to brainwash people who are already mentally ill, already mentally fragile… This is about fighting for what’s right. I mean, all he did, all he used, were his words, and he was murdered for his words,” Mace said.
While several House Republicans were quick to point the finger at Democrats, without fully knowing the shooter’s motive and noticeably omitting recent attacks on Democrats such as Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and the killing of Minnesota State Rep. Melissa Hortman, not all GOP lawmakers joined in.
“Everybody’s emotions are high. I’m not going to point the fingers at either party. Both parties have some guilt,” House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, a Kentucky Republican, told ABC News. “So hopefully we can, we can take a tragedy like this and try to all do better. And I think we can all do better — myself included.”
Members on both sides of the aisle reiterated concerns for their personal safety. Mace, currently running for governor of South Carolina, said she won’t be doing public events until “we have a better handle on greater security controls.”
“We always overreact. We need to react prior. Leadership is woefully ill-prepared,” Tennessee Rep. Tim Burchett told reporters. He added that he’s afraid something “really bad is going to happen before we get something done up here.”
“Heck no,” Burchett said when asked if he feels safe on Capitol Hill.
On the other side of the aisle, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in floor remarks on Thursday condemned Charlie Kirk’s murder as “heinous” and “cowardly” and called for an end to political violence.
Schumer, the Senate’s top Democrat, also said that “finger-pointing” would not help cool tensions in the country.
“There should be no finger-pointing because this is an attack on our democracy itself. And if we fail to quell those fires, our democracy will be doomed. We should disagree. We can disagree with our ideas, but not with weapons and bloodshed and killing,” Schumer said.
