John Fetterman Doesn’t Bite As Katie Couric Prods Him To Condemn Charlie Kirk

Journalist Katie Couric attempted to push Democratic Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman to criticize slain Turning Point USA (TPUSA) founder Charlie Kirk on “Next Question with Katie Couric” Thursday, but the senator declined to do so.

After the Sept. 10 assassination, some celebrated Kirk’s murder and attacked his rhetoric, leading to multiple firings. Couric noted on her podcast that critics opposed President Donald Trump’s administration honoring Kirk posthumously, but Fetterman expressed no objections.

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“Do you think that flags should have been flown at half-staff? Do you think his body should have been flown on Air Force Two? Do you think he should have posthumously been given the Presidential Medal of Freedom?” Couric asked. “I think some people felt that that was perhaps over the top in terms of mourning someone like Charlie Kirk. How did you feel about that?”

“I’d say that that was his choice and his prerogative, and that was really entirely up to him,” Fetterman said.

Couric followed up by asking if Fetterman, in hindsight, had problems with Kirk’s rhetoric. The senator responded that he had disagreements with Kirk, but was not especially familiar with his views.

“I’m sure you learned about them after his death, though,” Couric pressed.

“No, I haven’t done a deep dive on it,” Fetterman asserted.

The senator discussed viewing the horrific video of Kirk’s killing and condemned political violence as “unacceptable.”

“And engaging in a debate and views I strongly disagree on — that’s part of the American democracy. And for me, that would never justify what’s happened,” he said. “And I just chose not to take the opportunity to argue his views after children lost [their] father in the most violent public way.”

Fetterman also denounced “extreme rhetoric,” suggesting it contributes to events like Kirk’s assassination and calling for Americans to be less incendiary.

“I think some people might say Charlie Kirk’s rhetoric was extreme,” Couric claimed. “You know, I think that’s the conversation that happened. People condemned political violence, but they also felt a great deal of discomfort with his language, suggesting that these kinds of words lead to violence. I don’t know. I’m just kind of sharing my observations as I saw the conversations unfold.”

“Yeah, I agree. I mean, I think we agree that we probably didn’t agree with much of what he said. And I’m sure we both agree that you shouldn’t shoot people and you shouldn’t execute them in public,” Fetterman replied. “And I think two things must be true: that free speech—I’m an absolute free speech guy and you have the right to say these things. And you definitely also have the right not to get shot by sharing your views.”

Members of the media and others with large online followings misled their audiences on Kirk’s views on topics such as race and sexuality following his assassination.

The New York Times had to issue a correction on Sept. 11 for incorrectly attributing an antisemitic comment to Kirk in an article detailing his overall political views.

“An earlier version of this article described incorrectly an antisemitic statement that Charlie Kirk had made on an episode of his podcast,” the correction states. “He was quoting a statement from a post on social media and went on to critique it. It was not his own statement.”

Moreover, Fetterman said on Fox News’ “Jesse Watters Primetime” on Nov. 3 that he refuses to demonize his opposition.

“I’m not gonna call you a fascist or a Nazi. I’m not gonna compare anyone to Hitler or anything,” he said at the time. “That’s wrong. And if you resort to that thing, you’ve lost the plot.”

Couric admitted on a Nov. 6 episode of her podcast that she no longer strives to be “impartial” when covering Trump, claiming the president’s conduct is “beyond the pale.”