Daniel Pritchett is a resident of Dover.
In his monologue that became so controversial that it got his show temporarily canceled, Jimmy Kimmel asserted that Tyler Robinson, the accused killer of Charlie Kirk, was “one of them” — meaning a “Make America Great Again” supporter — despite those followers “desperately trying to characterize” him as something else, undoubtedly someone whom they can describe as a dangerous, leftist radical. The Republican Party, the chair of the Federal Communication Commission and many members of the MAGA movement have expressed outrage at this assertion, but I believe that Kimmel was, essentially, correct.
Tyler Robinson is, first of all, registered as “unaffiliated,” though he apparently has never voted. However, his parents — along with most, if not all, of his family — are registered Republicans. He lives in a deep-red county in a Republican state; it certainly would be accurate to say that he came from MAGA origins. So, in a very real sense, Kimmel was right.
That is why the reaction from Donald Trump and his acolytes was so intense; they were determined to blame the assassination on the left, by tying Robinson to a liberal organization, to a liberal professor or influencer, to a blue state or to a city with a Democratic mayor. So, when Kimmel pointed out that this is not possible, they reacted with fury.
But the truth seems to be that Robinson, instead of being “seduced by the left,” simply came to be friends (and possibly fell in love) with a trans person and quickly realized how cruel it is to dehumanize such persons, as Charlie Kirk had repeatedly done.
In addition, since he came from a staunch Republican family, Tyler grew up enjoying and using guns, so, if he ever gets upset, depressed or angry, he might think about using one. He is doubtless a great believer in his Second Amendment rights, as was Charlie Kirk, who once said, “It’s worth (it) to have the cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment.” Charlie Kirk was an absolutist on the Second Amendment, even though — unlike the First Amendment, which begins with the phrase, “Congress shall make no law” — the Second begins with “A well regulated Militia.”
Mr. Kirk also claimed to be an absolutist on the right of free speech. For those who admired him, it would be a real travesty if his death is used by the Trump administration to stifle debate and dissent, and to try to destroy our most basic liberty: the freedom of expression.
Reader reactions, pro or con, are welcomed at civiltalk@iniusa.org.
