The top congressional Democrats pushed back against President Donald Trump's accusation that the "radical left" was responsible for the assassination of right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) called on Americans on Thursday to unite in the wake of Kirk's death. In a video shared on social media, Trump baselessly blamed rhetoric from the left for the fatal shooting of Kirk during an event at an Utah college on Wednesday.
"Radical left political violence has hurt too many innocent people and taken too many lives. Tonight, I ask all Americans to commit themselves to the American values for which Charlie Kirk lived and died," Trump said from the Oval Office.
"For years, those on the radical left have compared wonderful Americans like Charlie to Nazis and the world's worst mass murderers and criminals. This kind of rhetoric is directly responsible for the terrorism that we're seeing in our country today, and it must stop right now," he added.
The suspect in the shooting remains at large and officials have not revealed any possible motive for the killing as of Thursday morning.
The Democratic leaders were asked about Trump's accusations on Thursday morning.
"Well, look, the bottom line is, this is a time that all Americans should come together and feel and mourn what happened," Schumer told reporters. "Violence, which affects so many different people of so many different political persuasions, is a is an affliction of America, and coming together is what we ought to be doing, not pointing fingers of blame."
"This moment requires leadership that brings the American people together, as opposed to trying to further divide us," Jeffries added. "Political violence in any form against any American is unacceptable, should be denounced by everyone. And moving forward, we have to figure out a better way to come together, not as Democrats or Republicans, but as Americans."
Kirk died Wednesday after being shot while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University. Video footage of the assassination quickly circulated on social media, showing Kirk being hit in the neck before the crowd fled the scene.
Leaders on both sides of the political aisle condemned the shooting, offering their condolences for Kirk's wife and children. Many called for an end to political violence, as some experts have warned of a rise in threats against political figures.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said Wednesday that lawmakers are concerned for their safety in the wake of Kirk's death.
"I think many of them are nervous, of course. They're public figures. They're exposed all the time, everywhere. We have great security measures for members of Congress, but there's a desire on many people's parts to have more," Johnson told CNN's Kaitlan Collins.