After Charlie Kirk's death, AOC asks 'Are we going to do something' about gun violence

WASHINGTON - Progressive firebrand New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called the assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk "tremendously disturbing" and urged for gun safety legislation to be passed by Congress.

Her comments come after Kirk was shot at an event at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10. That same day, a shooting occurred at a Colorado high school. 

"Every single day, there are people in this building that continue to vote against doing anything," Ocasio-Cortez told reporters on Sept. 10, referring to the Capitol building and Republicans in Congress. "They vote against universal background checks. They continue to support legislation and also remove any way to block the mentally ill, to block extremists, to block people with histories and records of domestic violence from getting guns in their hands. So are we going to do something about this or not?"

"Are we going to do something, or are we going to argue over rhetoric?" Ocasio-Cortez added. 

Kirk's death has sent shockwaves through Capitol Hill. Lawmakers engaged in a shouting match on the House floor Sept. 10 after a moment of silence was held for Kirk. Florida Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna at one point yelled at Democrats, "y’all caused this!"

When asked what she thought of a Republican lawmaker claiming that Democrats were the cause of Kirk’s death, Ocasio-Cortez said, "I don't think a single person who has dedicated their entire career to preventing gun safety legislation from getting passed in this House has any right to blame anybody else but themselves for what has happened."

"The assassination of Charlie Kirk risks an uncorking of political chaos and violence that we cannot risk in America," she said.

Other Democrats have also condemned the attack.

"The horrific shooting today at Utah Valley University is reprehensible. Political violence has absolutely no place in our nation," former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wrote on X. "All Americans should pray for Charlie Kirk’s recovery and hold the entire UVU community in our hearts as they endure the trauma of this gun violence."

The incident is the latest in a string of political violence aimed at public figures and their families, including a hammer-wielding assailant who broke into Pelosi's house in 2023 and attacked her husband.