Vance: There Can Be ‘No Unity’ With Those Celebrating Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
Vice President JD Vance delivered a forceful rebuke Monday of those defending or celebrating the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, declaring there can be “no unity” with individuals who excuse political violence or distort Kirk’s legacy.
Speaking from the White House while guest-hosting The Charlie Kirk Show, Vance warned that the nation cannot heal until it first confronts the “difficult truths” surrounding left-wing political violence and the cultural decay that enables it.
“I really do believe that we can come together in this country. I believe we must,” Vance said. “But unity, real unity, can be found only after climbing the mountain of truth.”
Vance rejected the notion that political violence is a bipartisan phenomenon. “If both sides have a problem, one side has a much bigger and malignant problem,” he said, referencing the 2017 congressional baseball shooting and the recent assassination attempt against President Donald Trump.
The vice president specifically called out leftist commentators, academics, and activists who downplayed Kirk’s murder or justified it by misrepresenting his statements. “There is no unity with someone who lies about what Charlie Kirk said in order to excuse his murder,” Vance said.
If we want to stop political violence like what happened to Charlie Kirk, we have to be honest about the people who are celebrating it and the people who are financing it.
My closing remarks on today’s episode of the Charlie Kirk Show: pic.twitter.com/pEAqbAL3yr
— JD Vance (@JDVance) September 15, 2025
He urged Americans to hold individuals accountable — especially those in positions of influence — for excusing or celebrating political violence. “When you see someone celebrating Charlie’s murder, call them out, and hell, call their employer,” Vance said. “We don’t believe in political violence, but we do believe in civility. And there is no civility in the celebration of political assassination.”
Vance reiterated the Trump administration’s commitment to dismantling the institutions that enable radicalization and terror from within. “We are going to dismantle the institutions that promote violence and terrorism in our own country,” he said. “But we need your help to do it.”
In a chilling moment, Vance acknowledged the risks he and others face by continuing the work Kirk started. “I can’t promise you that I will avoid Charlie’s fate,” he said. “But the best way to honor him is to shine the light of truth like a torch in the very darkest places.”
Vance closed with a call to spiritual and moral courage, quoting the Bible’s call to put on the “full armor of God.” “Let all of us put on that armor and commit ourselves to that cause for which Charlie gave his life — to rebuild the United States of America and to do it by telling the truth.”