In a cold open recorded separately from the bulk of Wednesday night’s episode of “The Late Show,” Stephen Colbert commented on the murder of right wing activist Charlie Kirk earlier in the afternoon. The comedian expressed sorrow at his death, but also fear for the future as he reflected on his own childhood in the tumultuous 1960s..
“After our scripts for tonight’s show were finished this afternoon, we here at ‘The Late Show’ learned that Charlie Kirk, a prominent right wing activist, was killed at a speaking engagement in Utah. Our condolences go out to his family and all of his loved ones,” Colbert said in the clip.
“I’m old enough to personally remember the political violence of the 1960s, and I hope it is obvious to everyone in America that political violence does not solve any of our political differences,” Colbert continued.
“Political Violence only leads to more political violence. And I pray with all my heart that this is the aberrant action of a madman and not a sign of things to come,” he added, before segueing into the show proper. You can watch the statement, as well as his full monologue, below:
Kirk, 31, was killed Wednesday afternoon after being shot once in the neck during a speaking event at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. Authorities say the shooter fired at Kirk from a nearby building, from a distance of between 100 and 200 yards away — at least one or two football fields in length. And because of the specifics of the shooting — it was clearly not a mass shooting, only one shot was fired, and the shooter immediately left the scene in a manner that suggests heavy planning ahead of time — authorities believe Kirk was the intended target.
There has, unfortunately been a lot of speculation, primarily among conservatives, that Kirk was killed for his politics by someone from the left side of the political spectrum. However, literally nothing is known about who the shooter is or what motivated them.
Police initially detained two unrelated persons of interest, but both were released after it was determined they have no connection to the crime, and as of this writing the killer remains at large. Police have also not released to the public any details that may help people to identify the shooter. In what may indicate that authorities don’t really have anything substantial, the FBI has set up a tip line.
