Capitol Report Full Broadcast (Sept. 16)

Good evening and welcome to the Capitol Report on NTD Television. I'm Steve Lantz. Coming up, the suspect in the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk is facing seven charges, including aggravated murder. That means more. Live from our global headquarters in our nation's capital, here's Steve Lantz. And officials in Utah are seeking the death penalty against Charlie Kirk's suspected assassin. That's as new details emerging in the case, with prosecutors saying more DNA at the crime scene linking the suspect, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson. We go live now to NTD's Jack Bradley, who's at the courthouse in Provo, Utah. So, Jack, what are some of these charges that the suspect is facing? Well, there's seven in total against Tyler Robinson. I want to read those out for you right now. The first one, aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, two counts of obstruction of justice, two counts of witness tampering, and committing the crime in front of children, some younger than 14 years old. Now, Robinson made his first court appearance today, virtually wearing a jacket that prevents suicide. The county attorney says that he's seeking the death penalty. Take a look. The defendant is believed to have targeted Charlie Kirk based on Charlie Kirk's political expression and did so knowing that children were present and would witness the homicide. I am filing a notice of intent to seek the death penalty. I do not take this decision lightly, and it is a decision I have made independently. Aggravated murder is the only offense in the state of Utah that could receive capital punishment, thereby the death penalty. And it's being charged as aggravated because the assassination was done in a way that puts others' lives at risk of death, as the assassination took place in front of about 3,000 people, Steve. And now also, according to prosecutors, DNA evidence on the rifle was linked. If I am able to grab my rifle unseen, I will have left no evidence. Investigators also say they found a note at Robinson's house that was left by Robinson for his roommate, allegedly saying that he has the opportunity to kill Kirk and that he would. Additionally, investigators found bullet casings at Robinson's house that had similar etchings on them to the ones that were found next to the rifle at the crime scene, Steve. Really remarkable, remarkable evidence put forth by prosecutors there, really dark insight into this suspect's mind. Jack, what are the next steps in the case? You're absolutely right. Well, the next step is there will be a preliminary hearing on the 29th of this month. What comes next is he will be assigned an attorney. He did not have one representing him during this first hearing. The county will be providing one. And because it's being capital punishment, they're seeking the death penalty here. He's going to be held without bail until the conclusion of this case at Utah County Jail, Steve. And today's Jack Bradley live in front of the courthouse there in Provo, Utah. Thank you, Jack. So what should have been a hearing to learn about the advances that the FBI has made in issues such as political violence and narco-terrorism evolving into a partisan bickering match? FBI Director Kash Patel was subject to personal attacks by Senate Democrats during a Senate Judiciary hearing today. Our Washington correspondent, Luis Martinez, joins us in studio to break down what happened. So, Luis, what can you tell us about today's hearing? Did we learn anything? Well, today's hearing was the first time Director Kash Patel of the FBI was present in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee since his confirmation hearing. So it was a great moment for them to examine the progress that the FBI has done under his management for the past seven months. But immediately we saw from Senate Democrats attacks and questioning how Director Patel handled the initial phases of the investigation into the murder of Charlie Kirk, in particular, his use of social media. Director Patel pushed back and said that his administration has actually been one of the most transparent in the Bureau's history. Let's listen to what he had to say about this. In the seven months that I've been FBI Director, we have produced 33,000 pages to the United States Congress, 33,000 pages. Just to put that in perspective, my predecessor in his seven-year term issued 13,000 pages to Congress. So, Steve, we just heard from Director Patel during his seven-month tenure. He has already produced three times more documents that Director Comey produced for Congress during seven years, three times more during seven months of the Patel administration in the Bureau. Luis, there are some heated moments that took place throughout the hearing today. Many of the clips are now trending on social media. What can you tell us about some of these heated exchanges? Yes, one of the ones that is trending on social media is a heated exchange between Senator Cory Booker and Director Patel. And you can notice how Senate Democrats are trying to get Kash Patel in this gotcha moment that may be seen to be ready for TV. There's another one, a particular one, that we're about to watch in between Kash Patel and Senator Adam Schiff. And they even have props, Steve, behind him when they're coming into these moments where Democrats are speaking in the Senate Judiciary Committee. And they didn't take their time to talk about investigation, crime, narco-terrorism in the U.S. during the past seven months. Let's listen to that heated exchange between Adam Schiff and Director Patel. Did you ever terminate or discipline an FBI employee in whole or in part because they had been assigned or worked on an investigation of Donald Trump or January 6th? FBI employees are only terminated if they failed to uphold their oaths of office and duty. Yes or no, you're not answering my question. I don't have to answer your question yes or no, because you're setting up a trap so you can have a media narrative, and I'm not giving it to you. Unless it's true that you fired people. People have been terminated at the FBI who failed to uphold the standards that the FBI requires them to uphold. Steve, we also saw a moment in between Senator Tom Tillis, the outgoing Republican senator from North Carolina, and Kash Patel where he congratulates Patel for his demeanor and keeping calm, but also advised him not to take the bait from Senate Democrats to produce these very televised moments for left-wing media. To your point, Louise, a lot of stagecraft, a lot of props involved. This was a pre-planned hearing. This has nothing to do with the events that took place in Utah, the assassination of Charlie Kirk. However, it was timely in that regard to have the FBI director in front of the public. Did you learn anything about the Tyler Robinson investigation? We did learn, Steve, that so far the FBI has already conducted over 100 interviews of people that might have information related to the assassination of Charlie Kirk. We also learned from Director Patel that it's way more than 20 people, the ones that they're investigating, from the Discord chat group that Tyler Robinson participated in. Initially, we thought that that chat group, which is a video game platform chat group, only had 20 people involved. Apparently, it's a number way higher than that. We know that the FBI is conducting all sorts of investigations into what Tyler Robinson has been conducting through his digital devices. Something else that came up in the hearing was an FBI initiative under the previous administration, the Biden administration, something called Operation Arctic Frost. What is this? The Republican ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senator Chuck Grassley, revealed that a whistleblower from the FBI had produced information that the Senate Judiciary Committee would release on Operation Arctic Frost, where enacting a special agent in charge of an operation within the FBI during the previous administration was targeting and investigating conservative groups. It was particularly interesting to today's The News of the Week is that 92 of these conservative organizations were being targeted by the FBI and being investigated. Among them was Turning Point USA, which makes it obviously very interesting and relevant to the investigation into Charlie Kirk's assassination. Certainly interesting. From what I understand, Turning Point USA is the only conservative group that we know of as of now, but we will find out the rest later in the week. That is correct. Senator Chuck Grassley only revealed that during the Senate Judiciary Committee, but the session remains open for a week in which he will produce the rest of the material. Within the next week, we should know what the other 91 organizations that were being targeted by the FBI are. NTD's Luis Martinez, great reporting. Thank you. President Trump filing a multi-billion dollar defamation lawsuit against a major media company. Joining us now live is NTD's Washington correspondent, Mari Otsu. Good evening, Mari, from the White House. What can you tell us about President Trump's latest legal action? Steve, good evening. President Trump is now filing a $15 billion lawsuit against the New York Times, four of its reporters, and Penguin Random House, accusing them of defamation during the height of the 2024 election. And in his announcement, President Trump actually mentions two previous lawsuits, one filed against ABC News and the other against Paramount and CBS, both of which were settled for what President Trump says are record amounts. And here's the president this morning on why these lawsuits matter right now. Take a look. Well, ABC paid me $16 million recently for a form of hate speech, right? We want everything to be fair. It hasn't been fair. President Trump says he is proud to hold the New York Times responsible, as he is doing with ABC and Paramount, who knew, quote, they were falsely smearing me through a highly sophisticated system of document and visual alteration. They practiced this long-term intent and pattern of abuse, which is both unacceptable and illegal. The president cites the New York Times' endorsement of vice president and then presidential candidate Kamala Harris, saying that putting her on the front page is, quote, something unheard of. The piece he's referring to is called the only patriotic choice for president and begins with the line, it is hard to imagine a candidate more unworthy to serve as president of the United States than Donald Trump. It goes on to call President Trump morally and temperamentally unfit for office and says he will do profound and lasting harm to our democracy. President Trump's legal team is also taking aim at three articles they claim are crafted with actual malice calculated to inflict maximum damage upon President Trump for purposes of election interference. One of them says President Trump meets the definition of a fascist, warning readers he would, quote, rule like a dictator. In the president's 2022 defamation suit against CNN, his legal team says that a search for instances in which the name Trump appears within 10 words of Hitler or Nazi in CNN broadcasts since November 2016 produces at least 645 results. The same suit alleges that CNN attempts to taint the president with labels of racist, Russian lackey, insurrectionist and threat to democracy and points to a broadcast calling him as destructive as Hitler, Stalin and Mao. They accused me of being a Nazi. They accused me of being a Hitler type guy. And I'm not. I'm the opposite. They're the ones that are doing their oppressive. This is like an oppressive machine. And, you know, they also happen to have the press for whatever reason. But think of the think of what they're fighting for. This legal action is coming as the Trump administration condemns all forms of political violence and radicalization in the wake of Charlie Kirk's assassination. For years, those on the radical left have compared wonderful Americans like Charlie to Nazis and the world's worst mass murderers and criminals. This kind of rhetoric is directly responsible for the terrorism that we're seeing in our country today. And it must stop right now. As the administration says that they are working to expose and dismantle the forces that led to Kirk's assassination. President Trump is arriving in England for his second state visit, where he's expected to be welcomed at Windsor Castle by the royal family tomorrow and meet with Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Thursday. Steve, back to you. Entities Mario to live at the White House. Thank you. President Trump today signing an executive order extending the deadline for the top deal. The date now pushed back until December 16th. TikTok facing a bipartisan push to divest from its Chinese ownership or else face a ban in the United States. Officials fear that the CCP uses the platform to spy on Americans and harvest their data. Also concerns over the algorithm and its intent. The administration says a framework has been reached between the United States and China over the app. So far, President Trump has not specified which companies are involved in the framework. He is expected to speak to CCP leader Xi Jinping about the deal on Friday. Charlie Kirk's alleged assassin Tyler Robinson today hearing the state of Utah's slew of charges against him. Utah County also seeking the death penalty now. Joining me now to discuss this development is California criminal law and lawyer and author Joseph Tully. Joseph, great to have you with us. So the Utah County attorney today sharing some really startling details on the assassination of Charlie Kirk, including text messages between the suspect Tyler Robinson and his roommate and also a partner who was his romantic partner. I want to play a clip for you. Roommate. I thought they caught the person. Robinson. No, they grabbed some crazy old dude, then interrogated someone in similar clothing. I had planned to grab my rifle from my drop point shortly after, but most of that side of town got locked down. It's quiet almost enough to get out, but there's one vehicle lingering. So are these messages considered and legally admissible in court as a confession? They would be, yes. In a criminal law prosecution, basically anything that an accused said can come into court. However, if there's something good, the prosecution can keep that out, but anything inculpatory, anything that where it makes it look like the accused is guilty, that can come into court under hearsay exceptions. No problem. So I would expect if there is a case has been filed that those text messages will be used against him in court. Now, I mean, based on your experience, listening to the prosecutors, the prosecutor earlier today, reading the dialogue back and forth, how common is it to have this type of evidence in a criminal case of this nature? It just seemed really sort of remarkable. It was very remarkable. And looking over in this case in preparation for this appearance, a lot of things are addressed in those text messages. It's a boon for the prosecution to some people. I think it's considered almost too much, too good. That was sort of the threads that I was following on social media. But the criminal law has changed in the last five years. Now, instead of reading police reports, we're watching videos. Now we're able to get people's phones histories. I'm sure Internet searches will come up. A lot will be unfolded. We're living our lives digitally, and that's making its way into the criminal law courtroom. So I think what we've seen now, we've seen very quick, easy pieces of evidence the prosecution can bring. But I think there will be a lot more offered once a deeper forensic study has begun. Yeah, we saw how he regretted leaving the weapon behind and how he went back. I mean, really an incredible insight into how that day unfolded from the shooter's perspective. The suspected shooter's romantic relationship and his roommate really adds a whole different dimension to the case as we can see the dialogue between the two of them. How could that factor into the investigation? Sure. Again, everything is alleged at this point, even though there is strong evidence, damning evidence. We must remember everybody is innocent until proven guilty. But on the point of your question, the romantic interest that he has will be used against him in court in terms of a motive. Why did he not like Charlie Kirk? And also to prove the death penalty, some of the allegations they have to prove, not that this just was a murder, but that it was motivated by hate, that it was done by someone who wanted to stop someone for their free speech. So the romantic relationship will be used as motive. Charlie Kirk was a conservative, he was a Christian, and many viewed him as being opposed to an LGBTQ lifestyle or the trans movement. He was a very vocal critic of the trans movement. And the roommate here is reported to be a trans person. So therefore, the prosecution will play up the roommate's and the romantic partner's sort of trans identification in terms of providing a motive for the shooting. The press pressed the prosecutor as to whether or not the roommate could be implicated. And the prosecutor said, no comment basically at this time. We'll certainly be keeping an eye on that. The case is playing out within the state of Utah, but obviously it has the attention of the nation and many around the world. What limits do you see that may exist on what the media will have access to as we continue to follow this case? Will we be able to see inside of the courtroom all of the proceedings? Well, this is a state case, so we will have more access to it. The last big case that came before the country and really the world was the Sean Diddy Combs case, and that was in a federal courtroom. And federal courtrooms have a prohibition against cameras, whereas state courts do not. So I think we will have more access to the inner courtroom and as things happen in the courtroom. However, in terms of what we will see as the case is developing, we just saw an earlier report that Cash Patel, the director of the FBI, was being criticized for letting out too much information as the case was developing. So there's a balance between being transparent and being professional in terms of law enforcement agency. Just like somebody accused shouldn't talk too much before their day in court, the prosecution, the investigation shouldn't let out too many details prior to really getting their case down pat, so to speak. So really, there's no professional or legal limitation. It's more how comfortable law enforcement officials will feel letting out certain items of information, trying to balance out the public's right to information versus their duty to put their case together in a tight way so that not too much information leaks out that might detriment their case. It might be a detriment to their case. And as if this case didn't have enough in and of itself, there are other factors and complications. There's this man named George Zinn who sparked chaos just after the shooting, telling officers, I'm quoting him, I shot him, now shoot me. He later admitted that he lied to distract from the real shooter. This person's now being held in charges of destruction of justice and possession of child sex abuse material. What do you make of this and where is this investigation going to lead? It's a very bizarre occurrence. It doesn't really pop up in cases. I've never seen it. Here you have somebody who's clearly not a Charlie Kirk fan showing up at a rally, and then just as by chance, Charlie Kirk gets shot, and we could presume that Mr. Zinn didn't know that, then he instantly jumps into action, acting as sort of a decoy so that the real shooter can get away. Is he psychic? I don't think that would be the answer. So is he mentally disturbed and he just is like lightning striking, very against all odds? Maybe he was part of the overall conspiracy. However, reports seem to suggest that he was just sort of a lone wolf that took advantage of the situation. However, it does go a little deeper. I do believe that there are earlier videos of him talking about 9-11. So that's a whole other rabbit hole that perhaps will be explored in this investigation. I think you might be on to something. The president in the Oval Office suggesting RICO charges in a lot of these left-wing groups, far left, I should say, groups that are causing chaos and doing a lot of bad things to the country. Attorney Joseph Tully, really appreciate you joining us. Coming up, Israeli forces striking Houthi targets in Yemen as Israel expands ground operations inside of the Gaza Strip. Meantime, Secretary of State Marco Rubio meeting with Qatari officials. And a New York judge tossing two terror-related murder charges against accused killer Luigi Mangione and schedules a new hearing. Details when we return. I didn't ask to lose my mother or to be abused at five years old. I didn't ask to be kicked out of my house with nowhere to go. I didn't ask for any of this. But I did ask for help and Covenant House was there. Thanks to their love and support and to generous people like you, I got what I needed to take control of my life. For the young people who didn't ask to be put in unthinkable situations, Covenant House is there providing safety, hope and a brighter future. Call or go online now for a gift of only $19 a month, just 63 cents a day. You can provide hot meals, safe shelter, medical care and love to more than 2,000 young people who sleep at a Covenant House every night. One in 10 young adults will experience homelessness this year. Your gift can help reach them when they need it most. 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Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio meeting with officials in Qatar just days after Israel struck Hamas' leaders in Doha. And today's Jason Perry has the story. Israel released footage on Tuesday of Israeli fighter jets taking off from Israel to launch strikes in Yemen over 1,000 miles away. Israel reported striking the Hudaydah port, which Israel says is used by the Houthi terrorist group for receiving weapons from Iran, which will later be used to attack Israel and its allies. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said this after the strikes. At the same time, our forces are operating in Gaza City. We are currently making efforts to open additional routes to enable a faster evacuation of the Gaza population, to separate it from the terrorists whom we want to attack. Israeli troops have begun expanding ground operations in Gaza City, one of Hamas' final strongholds. Israel believes about 3,000 Hamas terrorists are still in Gaza City, and many residents still have not evacuated the combat zones. The Hamas terrorist group released a statement saying that Israel's military operations would endanger the lives of Israeli soldiers being held hostage by Hamas. A spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces said Hamas had turned Gaza City into the, quote, largest human shield in history. Beneath the streets runs a vast network of tunnels connecting command centers, rocket launchers and weapons storage facilities, all deliberately hidden under civilians and civilian infrastructure. President Trump also commented on the situation. I hear Hamas is trying to use the old human shield deal. If they put the hostages in front of them, Hamas as protection, they call them bodyguards, Hamas is going to have hell to pay. Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke about the war in the Gaza Strip before he departed Israel on Tuesday. Our preference, our number one choice is that this ends through a negotiated settlement where Hamas says, we're going to demilitarize, we're no longer going to pose a threat, we're going to disband, we're going to release every single hostage. Rubio then flew to Qatar, where he met with Qatari officials, who Rubio says can play a key role in helping to reach an agreement to end the war in the Gaza Strip. His meeting also comes after Israel reported striking Hamas leaders who were living in Qatar's capital. The spokesman for Qatar's foreign ministry said the Israeli strikes in Doha heightened the need for renewed defense agreements between Qatar and the United States. Jason Perry, NTV News. President Trump departing for Britain for an unprecedented second state visit. He said it's a great honor to be hosted by his friend, the King, for a day of British pageantry. The two nations are expected to agree on trade deals worth more than $10 billion. NTV's international correspondent Malcolm Hudson has more. President Trump is traveling to Britain for a second state visit, an honor never given to any other US president. Before leaving, he said, Well, my relationship is very good with the UK and Charles, as you know, who's now King, is my friend. And it's the first time this has ever happened where somebody was honored twice. So it's a great honor. But basically, they're also on trade. They want to see if they can find a trade deal. And we made a deal. And it's a great deal. And I'm into helping them. Our country is doing very well. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer wants to pitch Britain as a destination for US investment, closely aligning its financial services, tech and energy sectors with larger US peers to try to drive much needed economic growth in the UK. The two are expected to seal deals worth more than $10 billion. Trump and his first lady Melania will be greeted by King Charles on Wednesday for a day of pomp and ceremony at Windsor Castle, including a carriage tour, a state banquet, a flypast by military aircraft and a gun salute. Both nations will have sizable delegations. British police have implemented extensive security measures patrolling the waters around Windsor Castle, saying they had planned for just about every foreseeable eventuality. The high profile trip comes after the assassination of Charlie Kirk, prompting additional security concerns. So a review of the routes being taken, the premises, the residents they're staying at, looking at any buildings that overlook those areas, line of sight, etc. So any possible threat to the principals, the president, his wife, the king, the queen, prince, princess of Wales, everybody. Trump will return to the United States on Thursday evening. Malcolm Hudson, NTD News. China is seeking to pass a law to aid its transnational repression, especially targeting people critical of the CCP. Even foreign citizens are now targets. You can find out more tonight on China In Focus with Tiffany Meyer at 9pm Eastern. A New York judge today tossing two terror-related charges against murder suspect Luigi Mangione. The judge said the charges were legally insufficient. Antony's Arlene Richards has more. A New York judge ruled on Tuesday that charges of first-degree murder in furtherance of an act of terrorism and murder in the second degree as a crime of terrorism against Luigi Mangione are dismissed. Mangione was indicted last December by a Manhattan grand jury on 11 counts, including first-degree murder and second-degree murder, along with other weapon and forgery charges. He's charged with killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. State Court Judge Gregory Caro said in a written opinion that the prosecution relied heavily on claims that Mangione's ideological motive for the crime was terror-related. The prosecution said Mangione had a desire to draw attention to what he perceived as inequities within the American healthcare system. Caro said there was no indication in the murder statute that such ideology fits within the definition of terrorism. The judge left in place second-degree murder charges despite the defense's efforts to have the entire state case dismissed. Mangione also still faces federal charges and other state charges in Pennsylvania, all of which he has pleaded not guilty to. The judge set hearings for Mangione's New York case to begin on December 1st. A trial date has not yet been set. Arlene Richards, NTD News. Coming up, the Trump administration is going after left-wing organizations that foster domestic terrorism. President Trump working to lower crime in American cities starting with Memphis. More on that after the break. You've done the hard part. You quit smoking. Now do the easy part and get scanned for lung cancer. If you smoked, you may still be at risk, but early detection could save your life. Talk to your doctor and learn more at SavedByTheScan.org. I'll call you for dinner. Adopting teen sisters, it's a lot. Girls, you're gonna be late. You want breakfast? No thanks, we're good. They're always in their own world. Twice the work, twice the surprises. Just try it. But if you think of it that way, they're also twice as fulfilling. I think you should ask her yourself. Is it okay to call you mom? Of course you can. And welcome back to the Capitol Report on NTD Television. President Trump's task force will strategically be tackling American cities to lower crime. This while his administration is targeting a vast domestic terror movement that incites violence similar to Charlie Kirk's assassination. Joining me now to discuss is Mark Meckler, president and co-founder of Convention of States, and Josh Lafazan, Democratic strategist. Great to have you both with us. So we heard yesterday the vice president and Stephen Miller discussing the administration's plan to go after left-wing organizations that are promoting violence. Let's have a listen. Organized doxxing campaigns, the organized riots, the organized street violence, the organized campaigns of dehumanization, vilification, posting people's addresses, combining that with messaging that's designed to trigger and incite violence, and the actual organized cells that carry out and facilitate the violence, it is a vast domestic terror movement. With God as my witness, we are going to use every resource we have at the Department of Justice, Homeland Security, and throughout this government to identify, disrupt, dismantle, and destroy these networks and make America safe again for the American people. Josh, how have these movements and organizations crossed the line, and are we witnessing a much deeper radicalization of a far-left contingent that we might have otherwise not been aware of until this moment? Sure, Steve. Thanks for having me. Listen, violence is unacceptable, and in this country, we have a new generation. The Harvard poll came out. Thirty-nine percent of students at Harvard feel that violence is an acceptable response to quell speech, right? We know in this country, we have folks who use social media and other tools to be able to, whether it's doxxing of an ICE agent or whether it's putting people in a database here, we know that things have gone far too far. What we have is a precious democracy and freedom of speech at the forefront of that democracy, and anybody in their right mind who celebrated what happened in Utah is somebody who I think is disgraceful, somebody who I don't want in my life. What I find frustrating, however, is that Stephen Miller, who is a partisan, conveniently forgets that according to polls from the DOJ, 75 percent of violent incidents of political violence are perpetrated by conservatives. Just four percent are perpetrated by liberals, and that four percent is far too much here. When you look at the issue of political violence in this country, whether it was Melissa Hortman, Paul Pelosi, Josh Shapiro, Gretchen Whitmer, or the son of the Obama-appointed judge Esther Salazar, or the pipe bombs at the DNC, or January 6th, the prevailing preponderance of evidence shows that political violence is perpetrated by the right and not the left. The right now is for unity here. We're trying to bring the country together. I know Stephen Miller isn't interested in unity. I am. Mark, I'll let you respond. Look, the statistics he's talking about are cooked. They come from the DOJ under the Biden administration. They include all kinds of things that are not right-wing violence. Unfortunately, this is how they blur statistics, and they've been doing it for many years. The reality is, we know. You could just look online right now today. I looked at it today. Literally, there is an infinite stream of leftists saying that the murder of Charlie Kirk is not only justified, but they're celebrating it. I think the vice president said it well. There could be no unity with people who, broadly speaking, believe that political violence is the way to go. You don't see any mainstream figures on the right saying this. Literally, zero mainstream figures on the right calling for political violence. That's not true on the left. There is a culture on the left that has created a permission structure for violence. You will hear mainstream leftist figures today saying things like, well, I'm against political violence, but, and that but, anything that comes after that but means we're creating a permission structure for political violence. That's where the American left is at today. A poll came out from Rasmussen today, literally saying that 26% of all voters on the left believe that the murder of Charlie Kirk was not only justified, but it's okay, broadly speaking, to do political violence. Josh, messaging from a lot of the mainstream media is subtly implying that Charlie deserved to be killed because of what they call hateful speech. We're seeing that was sort of the ideology in the suspected shooter's text messages with their partner. Meanwhile, conservatives say this is setting up a justification, like Mark said, for violence, like calling Trump an existential threat to democracy, constantly comparing him to Hitler. How do you parse this out? Well, let me say first and foremost, I'm a Democrat. Anybody who is celebrating or justifying what happened to Charlie Kirk, I don't want them in my life. I admonish them. I don't want to know them. They are a stain on our democracy. I can't tell you how emphatic Democrats have to be in this moment, especially when the prevailing sentiment in some circles is that Democrats are somehow celebrating what happened here. It's horrible. Our democracy is sacred. You do not settle scores by taking somebody's life. And what Charlie Kirk was doing, whether you found it hate speech or whether you found it abhorrent, he has a right to say it. I think in this country, we've gone so far from what Voltaire said, which is that I may hate what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it. So I want to clarify here that any Democrat who is celebrating this, who isn't being categorical and emphatic in repudiating what happened, I think they are a danger to this country. I don't want to know them. They should be ostracized from society. I do want to be clear here. I am a Democrat. I don't use the name of the former German chancellor when referring to President Trump. I've never called him a fascist. President Trump has used language tacitly encouraging the Second Amendment people to take care of Hillary Clinton, has talked about the issue of using language of his son making fun of Paul Pelosi. Mike Lee made fun of Tim Walz here and Melissa Hortman. So I just want to be clear here that political violence and political rhetoric is escalatory on both sides here. And for anybody to make a case that only one side falls victim to this ignores the fact that the President of the United States traffics in this same rhetoric as Mark. Yeah, Josh, I appreciate you calling it out unequivocally. I assume that means you canceled your subscription in the New York Times. The New York Times featured an op-ed by Hassan Piker, who is literally called for the physical gutting of conservatives. This was their featured article on Charlie Kirk. And this is the banner newspaper of the American left. And they're literally featuring a guy who calls for people like me and every political figure on the right and frankly, just regular conservatives to be killed, to be slaughtered. He's used those words openly. He said that they need to cut us open and spill our guts on the streets of America. And the New York Times is featuring that that kind of stuff is not featured on Fox News. It's not featured on Breitbart. It's not featured here. It's not featured on any conservative media outlet in America. This is the premier media outlet in the United States of America. MSNBC had to fire one of their commentators for saying it was justified to kill Charlie Kirk. Frankly, I watched it. All of their commentators said that at the beginning of their commentary. So I would guess that you are now saying that you are opposed to all of this left-wing mainstream media that is calling for this political violence. I don't have a prescription. I don't have a subscription, by the way. I certainly don't. Josh, we really do appreciate your authenticity and acknowledging this moment for what it is. However, on Capitol Hill last night, there was a vigil where you had 10 Democrats in the House of Representatives that showed up, but that only represents about 95 percent of their caucus. That means there's 95 percent of them that did not show up. And that's not to mention some people calling for them to have their own press conference to condemn it. You do see Senator John Fetterman, but he's sort of like the lone voice out in the wilderness on this. What does that say? What does that message to their constituents, the American people who are on the left, but not on the far left, when it comes to being a voice of reason like yourself at this critical moment? Yeah, it's frustrating because the Democratic Party oftentimes misreads the room here, right? Reading the room here, how could only a few Democrats go? And my congressman, Tom Suozzi, went. And so I made phone calls and my congressman went. So I don't consider myself as part of the Democrats here. If I was in Congress, I would have went here. But it's the same thing. Why did Democrats not uniformly stand and applaud for D.J., the young man with cancer, during the State of the Union? It's the same thing that Democrats oftentimes don't have the pulse of the people. I think it's because we have a party dominated by the gerontocracy, and Republicans too, but who are oftentimes millionaires and who are not regular, normal people here. Regular people are appalled by what happened. And I can't say it enough. If Democrats do not come out and forcefully and categorically repudiate what happens, it also means repudiating people on our own side. And this is where I have not been satisfied by Democrats, right? I'm a Democrat. I've been repudiating people on my own side who call for violence, who think this was okay, who think this was karma, who think he deserved this. That is not a democracy. That is a dystopian hellscape that I'm not comfortable living in. So I think more Democrats have to be like me in calling out our own party here. This is a moment for the country to come together and for the Democrats to try to make this partisan. Charlie Kirk said some inartful things that were, in my opinion, racist and sexist and homophobic. He did. He certainly does not deserve what happened to him. How can anybody possibly in their right mind think he deserves it? So I want to share with Mark. I don't have a subscription to The Times. I think people like Hasan Piker are cancers that metastasize on this country, people who call for violence in this country and escalate issues in this country. I repudiate them. I condemn them. If Democrats do not speak up, we're going to be irrelevant maybe for another two years, maybe for another four in Nashville. Mark, give you the last word. Yeah, I just want to say I want to know Josh because he's an honest Democrat. I'm super impressed with everything he's saying. I just haven't heard most of this from the mainstream left. One challenge, I would ask you to watch Charlie Kirk. I knew him well. I've watched dozens, maybe 100 hours of his videos. He didn't say things that were misogynistic or racist or homophobic. He spoke what I consider to be biblical truth. People can disagree with that. But he was, I mean, the guy was such a wonderful, loving man. He loved everybody. He has gay friends. He has black friends, black people on his staff, gay people on his staff, lots of powerful women on his staff to say that he was saying racist, misogynistic, homophobic things. It's just not the truth. And that's part of the reason when we say that kind of stuff that ends up making people like Charlie Kirk get killed. Mark Meckler, Josh Lavazan, really appreciate both of you coming on. Thank you. Coming up, after Charlie Kirk's assassination, what are everyday Americans saying about the celebration of political violence online from the far left? We'll hear from folks right here in D.C. just I never thought that whitening my teeth could be so easy. I just put the gel on the brush, the toothpaste on it, brush, and I can see my white teeth. Simply add smile actives to any toothpaste and our patented poly clean technology activates into a powerful microfoam that penetrates into the enamel surface to safely lift and remove stains. 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Order in the next five minutes and buy one get one absolutely free for just $24.95. That's two for one and save 58%. We'll even include free shipping. Get your teeth whiter guaranteed or return it within 60 days for your money back. I smile every day now. The difference is literally night and day. So now I'm always smiling, always choosing because now my teeth are much whiter. This offer is not available in stores. So call or click now before the special buy one get one free offer goes away. Kids love it. Parents trust it. Obviously, obviously. Explore GJW plus kids series and gone deal campus courses led by expert educators. This is spectacular. Children will learn values like respect, responsibility and knowledge in language science and more. Wow. All while having fun. Subscribe today at GJW plus kids where learning meets fun. And welcome back to the Capitol Report. So in the wake of Charlie Kirk's assassination, videos of people cheering on his death are inundating social media. Our everyday Americans reacting to the celebration of political violence. Entity Sam Wong was out in the National Mall to speak with the people. Vice President J.D. Vance was citing this statistic from YouGov saying that 26 percent of young liberals today believe that political violence is somewhat justified. And whereas 7 percent of young conservatives say the same. What are your thoughts on that number? Doesn't surprise me at all. We're from Seattle. It's very liberal out there. And we get a lot of that sort of rhetoric out there. I can't believe in the country we're at today. That if you speak your mind, they want to shut you up. It's funny that the left and the party of tolerance and et cetera just wants to shut conservative voices down. And it's insane to me. There are strong forces that are indoctrinating the young people today. And I think the government through through Donald Trump, they'll come to find out where the money's coming from and maybe shut some of those places down. You know, First Amendment gives people broad latitude to speak their mind and speak their truth. But I mean, not to do the things that they do. What would you guys say to those who are right now celebrating Charlie's passing? What would you say to them? What's the reason? What's the reason for doing that? I want somebody to explain that to me because I don't understand. And I think most of the country doesn't understand or most of the world. First reaction is like, yeah, I want to do something stupid and be violent. But that's not what Charlie would have been all about. That wasn't what he's about to the people that are celebrating. It is sickening. And I don't really think they even understand the gravity of what they're doing. He was two kids, dads, and he was a husband. And, you know, I'm sure he's got parents that are around. We stand here at the Lincoln Memorial. He paid the ultimate price for his beliefs and what he did to shape our nation. And I think what's happened with Charlie Kirk, although he wasn't a political figure, he was very much a figure in the national eye. And that same type of spirit of retaking our freedom and our liberties, I think, is playing out around the country. That is all we have for you tonight on The Capitol Report. For around the clock original coverage, visit us at NETV.com and download the NTV mobile app. From the nation's capital, I'm Steve Lance. Have a great evening. See you back here tomorrow.