Harmeet Dhillon, assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, tore into MSNBC because a guest floated what she called the "stupidest thing" she's ever heard regarding the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
In an appearance on Newsmax in the aftermath of Kirk's shooting death, Dhillon dismissed a suggestion by a guest on the liberal network that the suspect might have been a supporter firing off celebratory shots during his event in Utah.
"Utah is not the, you know, tribes and, you know, mountains of Afghanistan where people do that," Dhillon told "The Chris Salcedo Show." "We don't shoot our guns off in celebration in the United States at a debate.
"That is the stupidest thing I ever heard. It is shameful. And that person should really not be on a news network."
Dhillon, a prominent conservative civil rights attorney and former California GOP vice chair, said the attack on Kirk was no accident or spur-of-the-moment act.
"I'm not going to comment on ongoing investigations, but clearly this is something that was planned in advance," she said. "And, you know, it's not a casual criminal encounter. And it's scary."
The assassination has sent shockwaves through conservative circles, with Dhillon revealing that her phone has been "ringing off the hook" from concerned friends and family checking on her safety.
Those in public service face heightened risks, she said, and even before the shooting, she had urged her team of about 30 lawyers to apply for concealed carry permits in Washington, D.C., amid bolstered security measures.
"People who are serving our government, people who are taking down bad guys, we are all targets," Dhillon said.
Even well-protected figures like Kirk, who traveled "with security everywhere he went" and was "nonetheless assassinated because of who he is," are vulnerable, she said.
"Everyone who is working on behalf of this country to make it better has a target on their back from the left," she said.
Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA and a vocal ally of President Donald Trump, was gunned down in what authorities are treating as a targeted killing. Dhillon's comments come amid growing calls for accountability in media coverage of political violence, with conservatives decrying what they see as biased and irresponsible speculation from outlets like MSNBC.
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