President Donald Trump has been "struggling" to settle on a consistent public message following the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman said Friday.
Haberman, speaking on CNN's "The Source with Kaitlan Collins," said the variation in the president's statements reflected both timing and the personal relationships between people in the White House and Kirk, whose nonprofit, Turning Point USA, has established hundreds of college campus chapters. Kirk was shot Wednesday at Utah Valley University and later died; a 22-year-old suspect, identified as Tyler Robinson, was taken into custody. Authorities have not publicly determined a motive.
Trump blamed what he described as the "radical left" in an Oval Office address on Thursday hours after the shooting but also urged supporters to respond with "nonviolence," Haberman noted. When asked Friday on "Fox & Friends" how the country could come back together, the president said, "I'll tell you something that's going to get me in trouble, but I couldn't care less." Haberman said those remarks are in keeping with patterns she has observed in Trump's public communications.
"I think it depends on when somebody catches him as to exactly what he is going to say," Haberman said. "I think that a lot of his folks are, look — you know this, Kaitlan — so many people around President Trump were very close to Charlie Kirk."
Haberman pointed to Kirk's ties to senior Republicans, including Donald Trump Jr., and said the White House's response is shaped in part by those connections. She added that the president has faced at least two assassination attempts and a near-miss last year, which provides context for how officials and the president himself are reacting.
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican, took a different tone in public remarks Friday, calling for calm and urging an "off-ramp" to defuse political tensions. Other conservative voices blamed left-leaning opponents and media coverage for the shooting, while some far-right figures warned critics of Kirk to mourn respectfully or face professional consequences.
Investigators have not released a motive for the shooting. Police in Orem, Utah, where Utah Valley University is located, said they detained a suspect on the scene and later identified him as 22-year-old Tyler Robinson. Officials have provided limited details about the investigation as they seek to determine what prompted the attack.
Kirk founded Turning Point USA, a group that organizes conservative students and has established chapters on many college campuses. His national profile and close relationships with prominent conservatives have made his death a polarizing event, intensifying already heated debates about political rhetoric and campus activism.
Haberman said Friday that while Trump has at times adopted a calmer, more traditional tone during his first term, "I don't think you're ever going to hear him say something like what Gov. Cox said." She added, "I think he is saying what he thinks, and he is who he is. And I think that people knew that before they voted for him."
The shooting has prompted renewed scrutiny of how political leaders talk about opponents and whether heated rhetoric contributes to violence. Law enforcement and university officials have emphasized the need for accurate information and cautioned against premature conclusions as the investigation continues.