Vance urges employers to act against staff celebrating Charlie Kirk’s death

US Vice President JD Vance said Americans who publicly celebrate the killing of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk should face consequences, including at their workplaces.

"Call them out, and hell, call their employer," Vance said while guest-hosting an episode of the Charlie Kirk Show. "We don't believe in political violence, but we do believe in civility."

Kirk was shot and killed last Wednesday while hosting a debate at Utah Valley University. A prominent conservative activist, he drew strong reactions for his views on gender, race and abortion, says the BBC.

Since his death, several people — including pilots, teachers, medical staff and a US Secret Service employee — have been suspended or dismissed over social media posts seen as celebrating or making light of the killing.

Vance said in Monday's episode that left-leaning Americans "are much likelier to defend and celebrate political violence," adding: "There is no civility in the celebration of political assassination."

Other Republicans echoed the call for disciplinary measures. "I will demand their firing, defunding, and license revocation," Florida Congressman Randy Fine wrote on X, while South Carolina Congresswoman Nancy Mace urged the Department of Education to cut funding to schools that fail to act against employees posting such comments.

Among those disciplined was Anthony Pough, a Secret Service employee who wrote on Facebook that Kirk "spewed hate and racism on his show... at the end of the day, you answer to GOD." His security clearance was revoked. Secret Service Director Sean Curran told staff that agents must focus on "being the solution, not adding to the problem."

Companies have also moved swiftly. Office Depot confirmed it fired employees at a Michigan branch after a video showed staff refusing to print posters for a Kirk vigil. "The behaviour was completely unacceptable and insensitive," the company said.

Clemson University in South Carolina said it dismissed one employee and placed two professors on leave over social media posts about Kirk. In Canada, the University of Toronto suspended a professor following comments online, reports the BBC.

Some observers said the wave of dismissals risked chilling free expression. Karen Attiah, a former Washington Post columnist, said she was fired after posting about Kirk's death on social media. The American Association of University Professors said academic freedom should not be curtailed "under political pressure."

US law gives private employers broad discretion to terminate employees. "The First Amendment applies to government restrictions on speech, not private companies," said Steven Collis, a law professor at the University of Texas.

But Risa Lieberwitz of Cornell University's Worker Institute warned that public officials' calls for punishment could create "fear of retaliation" in the current political climate.