In an article for Slate published Tuesday, writer Luke Winkie argued that the political firestorm following the murder of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk is being fueled less by facts than by a volatile mixture of speculation, partisan narrative-building and ideological fear-mongering.
“It’s still too early to know the full answers to these questions, but that hasn’t stopped a whole bunch of people putting out a whole bunch of misinformation, half-truths and inflammatory claims on the matter,” Winkie wrote.
He argued that the right-wing reaction to Kirk’s death has escalated far beyond grief, turning into a sweeping crackdown on dissent and an attempt to reframe the shooting as a symptom of an imagined liberal conspiracy.
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“Much of this has to do with who Kirk was,” Winkie wrote, describing the conservative figurehead as “a talented showman and cunning organizer” who played a pivotal role in the growth of the American right.
But just as important to the fallout, Winkie maintained, is the murky identity of Tyler Robinson, the alleged shooter.
Robinson, a 22-year-old from Utah, has become a canvas onto which various factions are projecting their worst fears, according to Winkie. Conservative leaders like Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) and White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller have cast Robinson as “deeply indoctrinated by leftist ideology.” However, Winkie pointed out that the actual evidence tells a far murkier story.
There’s no sign, for example, that Robinson was involved in organized leftist politics, let alone part of a radical network.
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Instead, the 22 year-old appears to have been a quiet, somewhat socially isolated figure who drifted away from both formal education and political engagement.
“The revelation that right-wing media is most preoccupied with,” Winkie noted, “is Robinson’s romantic involvement with [a] queer roommate who is transitioning from male to female.”
This detail, Winkie suggested, has been opportunistically twisted to frame Robinson as “living an un-Christian lifestyle,” fueling a culture-war narrative that blames queer and trans people for the violence.
Winkie doesn’t downplay the horror of Kirk’s assassination, but he warns that the political response is careening toward authoritarianism.
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He cited Attorney General Pam Bondi’s threat to gut First Amendment protections as a chilling example, after she said “some hate can’t be negotiated out.”
Robinson reportedly texted his partner before the shooting. Winkie noted this statement was more personal and emotionally driven than politically calculated.
The writer also highlighted the Discord server where Robinson had been active, a space some hoped would reveal the killer’s radicalization. Instead, the chats turned out to be mundane, filled mostly with “gamer memes and loose group-chat chatter.”
Winkie wrote, “It wasn’t very partisan.”
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After the assassination, one of Robinson’s friends posted a prayer for Kirk’s family.
“Here is a group of kids blindsided by the reality that one of their friends had taken such drastic, world-altering measures out of a misguided sense of vengeance,” Winkie wrote.