Marco Rubio Says U.S. Should Revoke Visas of Those Who 'Celebrate the Murder' of Kirk or Other Political Figures

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said the United States should revoke visas from foreigners who celebrate the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, describing such actions as unacceptable behavior for visitors to the country.

"We should not be giving visas to people who are going to come to the United States and do things like celebrate the murder, the execution, the assassination of a political figure," Rubio said in a Fox News interview. "And if they're already here, we should be revoking their visa. Why would we want to bring people into our country they're going to engage in negative and destructive behavior?"

Rubio's remarks follow a series of statements by other administration officials. Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said over the weekend that visas should be revoked for people "glorifying the killings of Americans," while Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau wrote on X that "foreigners who glorify violence and hatred are not welcome visitors to our country," adding that he had directed consular officials to take "appropriate action" against those who post content "praising, rationalizing, or making light of" Kirk's assassination.

Landau also invited users to flag such cases in the comments of his post, which he said would be monitored by consular staff.

It remains unclear whether any visas have actually been revoked. CNN reported that the State Department has not responded to questions about how the policy would be implemented or under what legal authority it would act. The agency has previously said that free speech remains a priority.

Kirk was killed last week, sparking widespread reactions across the political spectrum and a debate over the boundaries of free expression when it comes to online responses to political violence.