Disgraced climate scientist Michael Mann went on a social media rampage on Thursday against Turning Point USA (TPUSA) founder Charlie Kirk following his assassination, including sharing a post that appeared to liken Kirk to a Nazi.
Kirk was shot and killed on Wednesday while speaking to students at an event at Utah Valley University, leaving behind a wife and two young children. Mann — who was sanctioned by a judge in March for providing misleading information to a jury — reposted a series of attacks on Kirk before walking some of them back.
He amplified several points criticizing liberal New York Times columnist Ezra Klein’s piece, “Charlie Kirk Was Practicing Politics the Right Way,” in which Klein praised Kirk’s commitment to free dialogue and argued they were “on the same side on the continued possibility of American politics,” despite their differences.
“I had my differences with the head of Trump’s Hitler Youth, but we both wanted the same thing: to make America great again,” one post Mann shared read.
Mann later claimed to have “overlooked” the language in the posts he shared.
“I was simply agreeing w/ the (widespread) criticism of Ezra Klein’s claim that Kirk was “practicing politics the right way,” Mann wrote Thursday. “I do NOT approve of the inappropriate & inflammatory language used to describe Kirk (which I’d overlooked). Have deleted.”
“The white on white violence has gotten out of hand,” Mann wrote in a separate post after pictures of the alleged assassin were released. Mann later deleted the post without explanation.
Mann reposted several other posts attacking Kirk, which remained on his account at the time of publication.
“Galling to see [Ezra Klein] claim Charlie Kirk did politics ‘the right way’ by focusing solely on persuading while failing to mention Kirk’s direct involvement in Jan 6 planning and incitement,” read one of the posts. “One can rue his killing while being clear eyed about his actual legacy.”
Mann later posted that he hopes the perpetrator is caught and that political violence is “completely unacceptable no matter what ‘side’ it is on.”
Neither Mann nor the University of Pennsylvania, where he serves as a professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Science, responded to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s requests for comment.
Mann, who once falsely claimed to be a Nobel Laureate, has a long history of making inflammatory remarks.
The climate scientist suggested in May that “we’re in second amendment territory” if President Donald Trump refused to comply with a ruling blocking his plans to dismantle the Department of Education. Mann also described in August Energy Secretary Chris Wright’s effort to update some climate-related reports as “exactly what Stalin did.”
Mann was sanctioned by a judge in March for conduct “extraordinary in its scope, extent, and intent” during a trial for a defamation lawsuit he filed over criticism of his climate research. A judge found that Manna and his lawyer “each knowingly made a false statement of fact to the Court and Dr. Mann knowingly participated in the falsehood, endeavoring to make the strongest case possible even if it required using erroneous and misleading information.”
Many others have already been let go from their jobs for their vitriolic social media posts regarding Kirk following his murder. Middle Tennessee State University fired now-former assistant Dean Laura Sosh-Lightsy on Wednesday after she wrote on Facebook that she had “zero sympathy” for Kirk. A secret service agent was also placed on leave after telling his Facebook followers to unfollow him if they mourned Kirk’s death, calling the TPUSA founder hateful and racist.
Officials on Friday identified Tyler Robinson, 22, as the suspect in Kirk’s murder. A family friend reported Robinson to authorities on Thursday evening, Republican Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said during a press conference.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact [email protected].
