Charlie Kirk’s murder: what has gone wrong in America?

The rash of more recent shootings is partially explained by a deadly change in U.S. politics. There was a time when political opponents were just that—competitors seeking political power with different ideas of what to do with it. But that is no longer the case.

Even when he was lamenting Charlie Kirk’s murder and posthumously singing his praises, U.S. President Donald Trump, pictured addressing the nation on Sept. 11, 2025, couldn’t help turning it into a bitter, partisan moment, writes Michael Harris.Image courtesy of the White House

Opinion

BY MICHAEL HARRIS

September 15, 2025

HALIFAX—The ghastly assassination of celebrity right-wing political organizer and podcaster Charlie Kirk last week in Utah raises the perennial question: what has gone wrong in America?

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