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Bernie Sanders condemns ‘disturbing rise in political violence’ after Charlie Kirk’s assassination
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Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., shared a nearly four-and-a-half minute video on social media following the assassination of Charlie Kirk that warned about «a disturbing rise in political violence,» which the senator fears could lead to folks being afraid to participate in public life. He added that «every American» must condemn what happened to Kirk.
Sanders has long been a staunch opponent of Republicans and conservatives like Kirk, but the progressive senator said Thursday that this disagreement is precisely what democracy and freedom are all about. He added that anyone who thinks violence is an answer is simply a coward.
«A free and democratic society, which is what America is supposed to be about, depends upon the basic premise that people can speak out, organize and take part in public life without fear,» Sanders said in the video. «Without worrying that they might be killed, injured or humiliated for expressing their political views. In fact, that is the essence of what freedom is about and what democracy is about.»
I’M A DEMOCRAT, AND CHARLIE KIRK’S MURDER MUST UNITE ALL AMERICANS AGAINST VIOLENCE
Sanders said he feared that the trend of political violence could create a chilling effect that prevents people from wanting to engage in democracy out of fear of the potential consequences that might ensue.
Charlie Kirk warned his followers to be wary of «assassination culture» among the left months before his own assassination on the campus of Utah Valley University. (Getty Images)
«Political violence, in fact, is political cowardice. It means that you cannot convince people of the correctness of your ideas, and you have to impose them through force,» Sanders said. «Every American, no matter what one’s political point-of-view may be, must condemn all forms of political violence and all forms of intimidation. We must welcome and respect dissenting points of view. That’s what our Constitution is about, that’s what our Bill of Rights is about, that, in fact, is what freedom is about.»
«The murder of Charlie Kirk is part of a disturbing rise in political violence that threatens to hollow out public life and make people afraid of participating,» Sanders continued.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., attends a rally to reintroduce the Medicare for All Act in Upper Senate Park on Capitol Hill on April 29, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
After Kirk’s assassination on Wednesday, uproar erupted on social media as posts and other records of people celebrating his assassination went viral. However, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have roundly condemned the political violence that took Kirk’s life.
CHARLIE KIRK ASSASSINATION ROCKS CAPITOL HILL, HEIGHTENS LAWMAKERS’ SECURITY FEARS
«This is beyond terrible,» Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., said. «Charlie Kirk was a husband, father, and son. Violence is never the answer. Sydney and I are keeping the Kirk family in our prayers.»
«I’m deeply disturbed about the threat of violence that has entered our political life, and I pray that we will remember that every person, no matter how vehement our disagreement with them, is a human being and a fellow American deserving of respect and protection,» said Senate Majority Leader John Thune.
Memorials honoring Charlie Kirk have been held across the country and overseas, including in Berlin. Kirk was assassinated on Sept. 10, 2025. ( Ilkin Eskipehlivan /Anadolu via Getty Images)
In a foreboding post on social media in April, Kirk himself warned about the «assassination culture» spreading on the left.
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«Assassination culture is spreading on the left. Forty-eight percent of liberals say it would be at least somewhat justified to murder Elon Musk. Fifty-five percent said the same about Donald Trump,» Kirk wrote in his post on X, which cited data from a study completed by the Network Contagion Research Institute (NCRI).
«The left is being whipped into a violent frenzy. Any setback, whether losing an election or losing a court case, justifies a maximally violent response,» he said.
Fox News Digital’s Alex Miller and Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.
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Pánico en Líbano: Israel llama a evacuar los suburbios de Beirut porque «terminarán como Gaza»
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The Israel Defense Forces on Thursday released a video it said shows the moment an Israeli F-35I «Adir» stealth fighter jet shot down an Iranian air force Yak-130 over Tehran, marking the first time the advanced aircraft has downed a manned fighter in combat.
«Completed. Target down. The target is down,» the pilot can be heard saying in the footage set to «Star Wars» theme music.
Israel’s military said Wednesday that the shoot down over the Iranian capital was a key milestone for its F-35 fleet.
Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar, commander of the Israeli air force, commended the pilots who carried out the mission as part of Operation Roaring Lion.
An Israeli Air Force F-35I «Adir» shoots down an Iranian Yak-130 fighter jet in a historic aerial engagement. (@IDF/X)
«The historic shoot down over the Tehran skies is a testament to the strength of the Israeli Air Force and to your personal determination,» Bar said. «The war continues – return home safely. Get some rest. The next mission is already waiting for you.»
The F-35I is Israel’s customized version of the U.S.-made F-35 Lightning II, a fifth-generation stealth fighter that anchors the country’s air fleet.
Israel became the first country to select the aircraft through the U.S. government’s Foreign Military Sales process in 2010 and received its first jet in June 2016.
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An Iranian Yak-130 is struck midair by an Israeli F-35I «Adir» during a high-stakes confrontation. (@IDF/X)
The Israeli air force gave the aircraft the Hebrew name «Adir,» meaning «Mighty One.»
The Yak-130, by contrast, is a Russian-made, two-seat combat training aircraft designed by the Yakovlev Design Bureau and manufactured by United Aircraft Corporation.
It first flew in 1996 and remains in active production.
Iran received its first Yak-130 aircraft in September 2023, according to Press TV, Iran’s state-run English-language broadcaster, as part of a broader effort to modernize its air force.
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A Russian-made Yak-130 subsonic two-seat advanced jet trainer and light attack aircraft maneuvers during a flying display on the third day of the Farnborough International Airshow in Hampshire, England, on July 11, 2012. (Adrian Dennis/AFP via Getty Images)
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In November 2023, Brig. Gen. Mahdi Farahi, Iran’s deputy defense minister, told Tasnim, a semi-official Iranian news agency, that plans had been finalized for Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets, Mil Mi-28 attack helicopters and additional Yak-130 trainers to join the country’s armed forces.
Iran previously acquired MiG-29 fighter jets from Russia in the 1990s.
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Tom Emmer calls for Tim Walz, Keith Ellison to ‘serve jail time’ if fraud coverup allegations are true
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EXCLUSIVE: The highest-ranking Minnesotan in Congress is calling for a deeper investigation into allegations that leaders in his state government knowingly ignored evidence of welfare fraud, and he called for those leaders to even face incarceration if proven true.
«People are sick and tired of elected officials having a double standard, being treated differently than they are. They’re held accountable for things that they should be held accountable for, when their elected officials are not,» House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., told Fox News Digital.
«If these two guys are dirty, they should be held accountable, and they should serve jail time.»
He was referring to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and state Attorney General Keith Ellison, two of several witnesses at a high-profile hearing on fraud conducted by the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday.
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer is criticizing Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s administration over the fraud scandal plaguing the state. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images; Tibrina Hobson/Getty Images)
Both Walz and Ellison insisted that they were serious about prosecuting fraud in the state’s social programs and that they took action to stop it once it was brought to their attention.
But Emmer cited a report by the House Oversight Committee that accused them both of knowing about the fraud earlier than previously thought and delaying public accountability for fear of political retribution from progressives in the state — particularly the Somali community in Minneapolis, who Republicans have accused of taking advantage of the state’s welfare system.
«They might have been able to qualify it enough that it wasn’t black and white, but if they lied to the committee this morning about knowing about the fraud and when they knew about the fraud and the FBI investigation, that is a criminal act of its own,» Emmer told Fox News Digital.
SCATHING AUDIT REVEALS MORE FRAUD CONCERNS INSIDE TOP MINNESOTA AGENCY WITH FABRICATED DOCUMENTS, ‘MISCONDUCT’
«So I do believe, depending on this report and what else the majority staff is doing, they very well may want to call them back in and depose them under oath.»
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison speaks during a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing on Capitol Hill. (Tom Brenner/AP Photo)
He added at another point, «You have maybe 80 to 100,000 Somalis in Minnesota. Tim Walz won with 52%. They made a difference. Keith Ellison won by less than 1%. I think it was 20,000 votes. Makes a difference. So if those are connected, yeah, I mean, this is campaign fraud.»
«I’ve taken accountability for this. I’m not going to run again. I need to spend the time fixing this,» Walz said during the hearing. «This does undermine trust in government. Do I wish there were things that could have happened earlier? Yes. But in this job, ‘wish’ didn’t do it. I’m looking into where I see it.»
CONVICTED MINNESOTA FRAUDSTER ALLEGES WALZ, ELLISON WERE AWARE OF WIDESPREAD FRAUD
At another point, Walz attributed the rise in fraud statistics to an increase in prosecutions, telling Republicans, «When you catch people and prosecute them, it shows up as a fraud increase.»
He also dismissed accusations that he kept whistle-blowers quiet over fear of being seen as Islamophobic, «I can’t speak to it because it’s not anything I would say.»
Ellison, meanwhile, said he was happy to work across bipartisan lines to prosecute fraud.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz testifies during a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing at the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., on March 4, 2026. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
«I am here to work to improve this system, and there are improvements that can be made,» he said. «If we can get out of fixing the blame and get to fixing the problem, that would be an enormous thing for me.»
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But Emmer, who maintained that further investigation was needed, suggested he doubted their intentions.
«It’s power. They want power. In order for them to get power, they need to be elected. In order for them to get elected, they have to cheat in different ways. And that is exactly what they did,» Emmer said. «If the Somali community is being used by these public officials to get themselves into office…it sure does look suspect, it needs to be investigated.»
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politics,house of representatives politics,minnesota fraud exposed,tim walz
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