The nation — and the world — is waiting with bated breath as it expects President Donald Trump to use Charlie Kirk's death to launch imminent crackdowns, a CNN analyst wrote Monday.
"Everyone is watching how Trump and his administration respond to see whether the president will build on his blame for the so-called radical left by moving against specific organizations or political figures," wrote the network's Stephen Collinson.
"This is an administration that never worried about crossing constitutional barriers with its questionable national emergencies that have unlocked vast powers. And Trump has turned the Justice Department into an engine for his own political grievances.
"Anger among conservatives over Kirk’s killing could be channeled into more intensity for Trump’s existing policy goals, like his crackdown on crime in Democratic cities, his push for mid-cycle redistricting to try to stave off GOP losses in the midterm elections, and a federal funding confrontation with Democrats that could shut down the government at the end of the month."
The assassination of Kirk last Wednesday has plunged the United States into a moment of profound political tension, exposing the deep fractures in America's increasingly volatile social landscape, he wrote.
Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) over the weekend described it as "an attack on a political movement," noting that "Charlie Kirk is one of the top three people in the country that allowed President Trump to win in 2024 by his efforts."
President Trump's response has been characteristically divisive. "The problem is on the left. It's not on the right," he declared, further inflaming tensions.
This approach stands in stark contrast to calls for unity from other political figures, even including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), who urged Americans to "remember that you can disagree with someone vehemently on policy and not hate them as a person," Collinson wrote.
The potential for escalation is palpable, the analyst wrote. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem warned on Fox News Sunday, "It feels like a grief has settled on not just the country, but the entire world. Something has changed." Meanwhile, Trump administration officials like Stephen Miller have claimed there's a "vast, organized ecosystem of indoctrination" by the left.
The investigation continues, with authorities in Utah probing the motives of the alleged shooter, Tyler Robinson. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox has claimed that investigators are examining whether the suspect's personal relationships with a transgender person might have played a role in the killing, though many reports claimed he came from a Republican family and had been radicalized by right-wing ideology.
Social media has come under intense scrutiny in the aftermath. Cox criticized platforms for "hijacking our free will with these dopamine hits," comparing the effect to fentanyl addiction. Elon Musk escalated rhetoric by declaring, "The left is the party of murder" during a far-right rally.
The tragedy has exposed the fragile state of American political discourse, Collinson wrote. As Cox poignantly concluded, "Every one of us has to look in the mirror and decide: Are we going to try to make it better or are we going to make it worse?"