San Francisco Frontiers - Trump urges peaceful response to Charlie Kirk killing

Trump, who soon after the killing angrily pledged a wide-ranging response against the "radical left," told reporters that Kirk had been "an advocate of nonviolence."

"That's the way I'd like to see people respond," he said.

Kirk, a 31-year-old superstar on the Republican right who sparked surging youth support for Trump, was shot while addressing a large crowd at Utah Valley University on Wednesday.

Trump cited "big progress" in the investigation.

However, authorities said the gunman remained at large a day later.

"Multiple leads are currently being investigated, but no suspect is in custody," Utah law enforcement officials posted, after canceling a previously scheduled media briefing.

"We're doing everything we can to find him, and we're not sure how far he has gone yet," FBI Special Agent Robert Bohls said earlier.

The FBI, which described the attack on Kirk as "targeted," published grainy photos of a young person it called "the potential shooter."

The pictures showed a man wearing a black baseball cap, dark sunglasses, and what appeared to be jeans, with a long-sleeved top emblazoned with a design that included an American flag.

A reward of up to $100,000 was posted for information leading to his capture.

Police say they believe the shooter fired a single bullet from a rooftop up to 200 yards (180 meters), hitting Kirk in the neck.

A high-powered bolt-action rifle was recovered in a wooded area.

- 'Dark moment' -

Reflecting the highly political nature of the incident, it was Trump, not law enforcement authorities, who first announced to Americans on Wednesday that Kirk had died.

Shortly after, Trump addressed the nation in a social media video address where he cited a "dark moment for America."

"For years, those on the radical left have compared wonderful Americans like Charlie to Nazis and the world's worst mass murderers and criminals," he said. "This kind of rhetoric is directly responsible for the terrorism that we're seeing."

Conspiracy theories ricocheted around the internet, while calls for a return to civility vied with those demanding vengeance.

"THIS IS WAR" wrote the popular right-wing X account of @LibsofTikTOK

Fox News host Jesse Watters on Wednesday said the killing signified that his side of the political spectrum was under attack.

"Whether we want to accept it or not, they are at war with us. And what are we going to do about it?" he asked his audience.

- 'Martyr' for the right -

Kirk was shot while speaking to the crowd and immediately collapsed in his chair.

Students at the university described the ensuing panic -- and their broader fears as political divisions deepen across the country.

"It makes me feel like I should be very careful about expressing my political ideas," said Samuel Kimball, a software engineering student, told AFP.

Kirk, who supporters have hailed as a "martyr" for conservative ideals, had an outsized influence in US politics.

He co-founded Turning Point USA in 2012 to drive conservative viewpoints among young people, with his natural showmanship making him a go-to spokesman on television networks.

Kirk used his enormous audiences on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube to build support for anti-immigration policies, outspoken Christianity and gun ownership, and to spread carefully edited clips of his interactions during debates at his many college events.

Three months ago, a Minnesota man shot dead a Democratic lawmaker and her husband in their home, and Trump survived an assassination attempt during his election campaign in July 2024.

Vice President JD Vance arrived in Utah to meet Kirk's family Thursday.

J.Peterson--SFF