Former President Barack Obama says he finds the murder of Charlie Kirk "horrific" and "a tragedy" and stressed that Americans must be able to disagree, push back against ideas they don't ascribe to, while respecting the right of others to hold those opinions.

Full remarks from the conversation between President Barack Obama and Steve Scully on Tuesday, September 16, 2025 at The Jefferson Educational Society in Erie, PA. Obama said that when a tragedy happened in his presidency,

Nearly 8,000 people packed Erie Insurance Arena for the Jefferson Educational Society's Global Summit event to hear the former president discuss bipartisanship in government, political violence and artificial intelligence’s role in society.

Barack Obama spoke about Charlie Kirk's murder in Pennsylvania. He termed the event a horrific tragedy. Obama stressed that violence has no place in a democracy. He mentioned America is at an inflection point.

Barack Obama spoke on political violence in the US, describing recent events as tragic and warning about growing discord in the wake of Charlie Kirk's killing.

President Donald Trump is pointing the finger at what he calls the "radical" left in the wake of Charlie Kirk's killing and is threatening to crackdown on left-wing groups.

Vance, who hosted "The Charlie Kirk Show" podcast for more than two hours, went further than other administration officials by naming two institutions: the Open Society Foundation