A senior State Department official is urging people to report immigrants and foreign visitors “who glorify violence and hatred” after conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated Wednesday during one of his signature college campus events.
“In light of yesterday’s horrific assassination of a leading political figure, I want to underscore that foreigners who glorify violence and hatred are not welcome visitors to our country,” Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau wrote on Thursday. “I have been disgusted to see some on social media praising, rationalizing, or making light of the event, and have directed our consular officials to undertake appropriate action.”
“I will direct consular officials to monitor the comments to this post,” he added.
Landau’s call for Americans to report people who have celebrated the attack had received more than 2,000 replies as of Thursday afternoon, many of them with screenshots of social media posts supportive of political violence.
Some posts — mocking Kirk’s death, suggesting violence against ideological opponents is legitimate, or sharing gruesome videos of his assassination — have received tens of thousands of “likes” on X since Wednesday afternoon. It is not clear how many of those posts are from non-U.S. citizens.
Trump’s State Department has shown a heightened willingness to monitor speech online, revoking thousands of student visas this year, including some visas for foreign nationals who expressed opposition to Israel amid its war against Hamas.
Kirk was a close ally of President Donald Trump. The FBI is still searching for the suspect in Kirk’s assassination, asking Americans on Thursday for assistance in identifying an individual caught on campus security footage.
Some Trump allies suggested Wednesday that the government crack down on leftist organizers and groups.
“It’s time for the Trump administration to shut down, defund, & prosecute every single Leftist organization,” Laura Loomer posted on X. “We must shut these lunatic leftists down. Once and for all.”