Utah Gov. Spencer Cox received praise from some commentators for urging civility at a joint state-FBI news conference about the alleged killer of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, but his remarks also prompted sharp criticism from prominent Republicans who recalled a bitter public feud between the two men.
Cox opened the Friday briefing by appealing to Kirk’s supporters to abandon violent rhetoric and to "find an off-ramp," telling young conservatives they were "inheriting a country where politics feels like rage." He also urged people to limit time on social media, calling it "a cancer," and said, "I would urge people to log off, turn off, and touch grass." While federal agents stood at the podium, Cox spoke for the majority of the event and described himself as "inspired by Kirk's writings and beliefs," calling for anger to fade rather than escalate.
The governor’s public appeal drew immediate praise from some pundits and observers who said his tone contrasted with more partisan reactions to the shooting. President Donald Trump, by contrast, blamed "bad people, bad philosophies, ideologies, and politics" for political violence, according to media reports.
But the exchange reopened wounds from a yearslong dispute between Cox and Kirk that intensified after Cox vetoed legislation seeking to ban transgender athletes from competing in girls’ sports. In 2022, Kirk and other conservative activists publicly denounced Cox, with Kirk calling him a "weak moderate" who "should be expelled from the Republican party" and accusing him of being "paid off by Big Pharma" over other transgender-related policy fights. Those comments, and related clashes with national right-wing figures, led some conservatives to view Cox as insufficiently aligned with the party’s more hard-line faction.
The feud deepened after Cox said he would veto a statewide ban on gender transition surgeries for minors; media accounts say Cox later signed a bill in January 2023 that banned transgender surgeries and sex-change procedures for minors. Cox, whose approaches to bipartisan outreach and civility initiatives such as his self-styled "Disagree Better" campaign have drawn criticism from some within his party, was booed at Utah GOP conventions in prior years and delayed a formal endorsement of former President Trump’s 2024 reelection campaign until after an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, according to published reports.
Some conservative voices reacted angrily to Cox’s role at the news conference. Former White House strategist Steve Bannon told the Daily Mail the governor’s remarks were "a national embarrassment," urging a harder-handed law enforcement response and dismissing calls for unity as inappropriate in the wake of Kirk’s death. MAGA-aligned journalists also expressed frustration; Julie Kelly told the Daily Mail she viewed Cox’s speech as "grandstanding" and said an elected official should not be the face of such a sensitive investigation. The pro-MAGA outlet Gateway Pundit described Cox on social media as a "dirty RINO/Democrat" and criticized him as a "shameless self-promoter," according to that post.
Others close to Kirk or associated with his movement remained publicly restrained in deference to the investigation and the family’s grief, while some friends and associates called it "ironic" that Cox, who had previously urged Kirk’s expulsion from the GOP, spoke at length about the slain activist.
Cox, a two-term governor who won reelection in 2024 with roughly 56% of the vote, has sought a moderate profile in recent years, meeting with Democrats and supporting outreach measures that have sometimes drawn ire from the party’s conservative base. His appearance at the briefing drew attention not only for its substance but for who delivered the message and how long he spoke while FBI officials listened.
Federal authorities have said the investigation into the shooting is ongoing; officials at the briefing provided limited operational detail as Cox focused on appeals for political calm and civic responsibility. The dispute over Cox’s role underscored broader tensions within the Republican Party between establishment and MAGA-aligned factions, and highlighted how political rivalries can resurface in the aftermath of a high-profile attack.
As the investigation proceeds, the debate over the governor’s conduct and the appropriateness of his public remarks is likely to continue among Republicans, with some emphasizing the need for unity and de-escalation and others calling for stronger partisan rhetoric and more aggressive law enforcement action.