And welcome to The Beat. I'm Ari Melbert. We are covering more of the reaction, the law enforcement

response, and what is increasingly a very divided political response to the terrible shooting of Charlie Kirk.

This is a nation that is reckoning with things we do know about, gun violence, political violence,

and a range of reactions from leaders. There have been many leaders

who have been responsible and tried to tone down the rhetoric, others dialing up the rhetoric.

Now, let's start with the most basic thing that is the same as it was last week.

Law enforcement officials have not determined or publicized a motive for 22-year-old Tyler Robinson.

He will be charged tomorrow, and given the voluminous evidence, he is, as always, legally

presumed innocent, but facing a lot of evidence that he was the shooter in this heinous act.

That, of course, will be dealt with in court.

Democratic leaders have condemned this

shooting and this type of violence. The New York Times reports that Trump White House, however, is not

joining them in that type of approach where you just deal with this as a terrible and initially

nonpartisan matter, especially with, as I remind you, no official motive from law enforcement,

but instead is vowing a, quote, vast crackdown on their opponents on what they call in the Times headline liberal groups,

threatening to bring the weight of the feds down on what they alleged was a left-wing network

that funds and incites violence. And the Times

reports that this White House, again, before all the facts about what is already clearly a terrible

killing, for those facts are in, they are, quote, seizing on the killing to make broad and unsubstantiated

claims about their political opponents.

The problem is on the left. It's not on the right. And when you look at the agitators,

you look at the scum that speaks so badly of our country, the American flag burnings all over the place, that's the left. That's not the right. A lot of the people that you would traditionally say are on the left.

...