World

North America

Violence

Opinion

Charlie Kirk was practising politics the right way

Ezra Klein US commentator and journalist September 12, 2025 — 8.51am

The foundation of a free society is the ability to participate in politics without fear of violence. To lose that is to risk losing everything. Charlie Kirk – and his family – just lost everything. As a country, we came a step closer to losing everything, too.

We’ve been edging closer for some time now. In 2020, a plot to kidnap Gretchen Whitmer, the governor of Michigan, was foiled by the FBI. In 2021, a mob stormed the Capitol in an effort to overturn the result of the election and pipe bombs were found at the Democratic and Republican National Committee headquarters. In 2022, a man broke into the home of Nancy Pelosi, s

See Full Page