While Johnson calls to lower temperature, House Republicans finger-point in Charlie Kirk killing
House Speaker Mike Johnson urged lawmakers “to turn the temperature down” on Capitol Hill following the killing 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 tried to do here, especially in a moment like this. We have colleagues on both sides of the aisle who are in a different place this morning than they were yesterday. People have been shaken by this event," he said.
Several rank-and-file Republicans, however, only doubled down on their unsubstantiated claims that Democrats "caused" Kirk’s killing.
Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, a close friend of Kirk, told ABC News she stands by her fiery exchange on the House floor on Wednesday night, which culminated in the Florida congresswoman shouting to Democrats who opposed a second prayer for Kirk: “Y’all caused this.”
"They use their national platforms to say that we're fascists, that we're going to take away their rights, that were basically demons in office," Luna said.
When asked by ABC News Capitol Hill Correspondent Jay O'Brien if blaming Democrats turned the temperature up and not down, Luna replied, "No, it's accountability. It calls them out for that."
Kirk, 31, was fatally shot while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University on Wednesday. A manhunt is underway for the gunman. The motive of the shooter is unknown, but Utah Gov. Spencer Cox called the fatal shooting 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.
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.
