Kristi Noem said she believes that the killing of Charlie Kirk could be a turning point for the country.

Kirk, a 31-year-old conservative political activist, was fatally shot Sept. 10 while speaking at Utah Valley University. The alleged shooter, Tyler Robinson, 22, was taken into custody following a two-day manhunt.

“It feels like a grief has settled on not just the country, but the entire world. Something has changed,” Noem said during a Sept. 14 interview with Maria Bartiromo on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures.” “My hope is that we will use this as an opportunity to come together and unify.”

Noem, the Homeland Security secretary and former South Dakota governor, went on to criticize what she described as “rhetoric we’re seeing out of the left and out of political animals,” saying it’s “ugly and it’s bitter and it’s seeking to seize this opportunity to turn it into evil.”

“I would just encourage everybody to start focusing on relationships, to start focusing on each other and talk about what Charlie believed in,” she said.

Noem also talked about her personal relationship with Kirk. She said he had the chance to meet her family, including her kids.

“He was a special man who stood up and was bold enough to go speak to people who disagreed with him,” she said. “We need more of that today. More civil discourse rather than some of the violence that we’ve seen.”

In a Sept. 14 post on Facebook, Noem wrote about the grief she felt after learning about Kirk’s death.

“Before, I have felt isolated in my grief, but this grief feels collective – millions of people’s hearts breaking and wishing they could carry some of the burden for Charlie’s family and dearest loved ones,” she wrote.

Noem also described some of her personal interactions with Kirk.

“I remember being so impressed by his talents when I first met him,” she wrote. “He had a skill set and knowledge I didn’t have and he became an encourager for me over the years.”

Noem was in her second term as South Dakota’s governor when she left to become President Donald Trump’s Homeland Security secretary. Kirk was “deeply involved” in the vetting process for top positions in Trump’s administration, ABC News reported.

Source link