The U.s. Confronts Another Crossroads Moment: From The Politics Desk

Welcome to nan online type of From nan Politics Desk, a newsletter that brings you nan NBC News Politics team’s latest reporting and study from nan White House, Capitol Hill and nan run trail.

In today’s edition, we tally done nan latest updates aft rule enforcement arrested a fishy successful Charlie Kirk’s killing. Plus, Kristen Welker looks backmost astatine nan 2011 shooting of then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords successful nan aftermath of nan Kirk assassination.

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— Adam Wollner

The latest connected nan Charlie Kirk shooting

Following a multiday manhunt, officials person identified nan person accused of fatally shooting blimpish activistic Charlie Kirk arsenic 22-year-old Utah resident Tyler Robinson.

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said astatine a news convention that investigators arrested Robinson aft analyzing surveillance footage, interviewing Robinson’s family members and reviewing online messages betwixt Robinson and his roommate.

“We sewage him,” Cox said, opinionated pinch FBI Director Kash Patel and different rule enforcement officials. Robinson is expected to beryllium charged pinch aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm causing superior bodily wounded and obstruction of justice, according to a probable origin affidavit.

The investigation: Cox said that a family personnel of Robinson’s — Robinson’s father, according to 2 elder rule enforcement officials briefed connected nan investigation — reached retired to a family friend, who contacted nan Washington County Sheriff’s Office pinch accusation that Robinson had confessed to them aliases implied that he had committed nan killing.

The politician said that investigators interviewed a family personnel of Robinson’s who said he had “become much governmental successful caller years.”

Authorities said they recovered from a wooded area a “high-powered, bolt-action rifle” utilized successful nan shooting. There were inscriptions connected casings recovered wrong nan rifle, Cox said. The inscription connected nan fired casing said: “notices, bulges, OWO, what’s this?”

Three unfired casings besides had inscriptions, Cox said. One read, “Hey fascist! Catch!” pinch an up arrow, a correct arrow and 3 down arrows.

What Trump is saying: President Donald Trump initially announced this greeting in an question and reply connected Fox News that rule enforcement had nan fishy successful custody.

“I dream that he was going to beryllium recovered guilty, I would imagine, and I dream he gets nan decease penalty,” Trump said.

Follow our unrecorded blog for nan latest updates →

14 years aft Giffords was shot, nan U.S. faces different crossroads moment

I was still a caller analogous astatine NBC News based successful Burbank, California, erstwhile nan telephone came successful connected a Saturday greeting that a congresswoman had been changeable — and it wasn’t clear if she would survive.

I had nan realization that thing shifted successful that moment.

I spent weeks connected nan crushed successful Arizona that year, 2011, experiencing nan scary of nan Tucson shooting — which resulted successful six deaths and much than a twelve injuries, including to then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz. — done nan eyes of nan group who lived there.

The federation came together aft that shooting, to mourn and to watch successful awe astatine Giffords’ spot and resilience. I still retrieve President Barack Obama’s reside astatine nan memorial, wherever he recounted Giffords opening her eyes for nan first time.

And Republicans and Democrats stood together, literally. When Giffords returned to nan Capitol a twelvemonth later, her beingness sent a powerful message. But truthful did her sitting adjacent to her friend and Republican colleague, then-Rep. Jeff Flake, who helped her guidelines to applaud arsenic he called connected chap representatives to beryllium pinch their colleagues crossed nan aisle. Throughout nan speech, Giffords’ husband, astronaut and early Sen. Mark Kelly, sat successful nan balcony, his spot and enslaved pinch his woman connected show arsenic it had been for nan past year.

More than 14 years later, and aft excessively galore episodes of governmental violence, we find ourselves astatine yet different political, taste and societal crossroads — different infinitesimal wherever it’s clear thing is shifting. We’re still piecing together nan shooter’s motivation, but what we do cognize is that Charlie Kirk was killed while taking portion successful 1 of our democracy’s astir cherished actions: serene governmental debate.

There are now respective large questions confronting nan country. How tin we perchance heal from this while we’re each truthful divided? How will our leaders respond? What domiciled does societal media play? And what, if any, work does each personification carnivore to hole this problem?

This Sunday, I’m looking guardant to talking pinch Kelly, Charlie Kirk’s home-state senator, erstwhile Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who lamented nan “pervasive sickness that is poisoning America” successful a connection successful nan aftermath of nan assassination, adding that Kirk’s “legacy will unrecorded connected done nan young conservatives that he helped enlistee to nan cause.”

That’s each From nan Politics Desk for now. Today’s newsletter was compiled by Adam Wollner and Ben Kamisar.

If you person feedback — likes aliases dislikes — email america astatine politicsnewsletter@nbcuni.com

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