US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has suggested that the US should revoke visas of people who celebrate the killings of political figures in the country.
“We should not be giving visas to people who are going to come to the United States and do things like celebrate the murder, the execution, the assassination of a political figure. We should not,” Rubio said in an interview with Fox News. “And if they’re already here, we should be revoking their visa.”
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (Photo: AP)
“Why would we want to bring people into our country that are going to engage in negative and destructive behaviuor?” he added.
Trump administration warns against celebrating Kirk’s killing
Rubio is the latest high-ranking Trump administration official to make a similar suggestion in the wake of the shocking murder of conservative activist Charlie Kirk last week. Earlier, Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin had also told Fox News over the weekend that visas should be revoked for people who “are glorifying the killings of Americans.”
People drive by waving American flags with a “Charlie 4 Ever” sign on their car window to pay tribute to Turning Point USA CEO and co-founder Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University. (Photo: AP)
Last week, Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau also made a similar suggestion on social media, saying “foreigners who glorify violence and hatred are not welcome visitors to our country.”
“I have been disgusted to see some on social media praising, rationalizing, or making light of the event, and have directed our consular officials to undertake appropriate action. Please feel free to bring such comments by foreigners to my attention so that the State Department can protect the American people,” he wrote on X.
Social media post on Kirk’s murder land people in trouble
It is not just foreigners; even US citizens have been targeted for their comments on social media over Kirk’s death.
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Karen Attiah, a Washington Post columnist, has alleged that she was let go by the Jeff Bezos-owned newspaper for her Bluesky post speaking out against political violence, “racial double standards,” and America’s “empathy towards guns,” in the wake of the Kirk assassination.
Earlier, MSNBC had fired political analyst Matthew Dowd after he suggested that the Kirk murder was caused by a chain reaction from his “hateful words” against various groups.
A memorial is set up for Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. (Photo: AP)
Pentagon warns against social media posts
On Friday, the Pentagon also said that celebration and mockery of an American’s assassination will not be tolerated within its ranks.
“It is unacceptable for military personnel and Department of War civilians to celebrate or mock the assassination of a fellow American. The Department of War has zero tolerance for it,” Sean Parnell, assistant to the secretary of war for public affairs, chief Pentagon spokesman and senior advisor, said in a social media post.
