Americans have praised Utah Governor Spencer Cox after he addressed the nation in a powerful speech honoring Charlie Kirk and revealing new information on the arrest of his killer.
‘Good morning ladies and gentlemen. We got him,’ Cox said as he opened the press conference announcing the end of the manhunt.
Kirke’s alleged killer, Tyler Robinson, was turned in by his relatives on September 11 and arrested the following morning.
Speaking at a press conference today alongside members of the police and FBI, Cox thanked the public for helping to review surveillance footage, sending in tips, and submitting evidence that helped them in their search for the killer.
After allowing FBI Director Kash Patel and local law enforcement to speak, he gave an impassioned speech, which was met with praise from many people watching.
One viewer wrote on X: ‘Governor Spencer Cox of Utah is a hero. He is giving a heart-moving speech at the press conference right now.
‘He is not speaking like a politician, but as a common-sense, compassionate man of deep resolve.’
The governor condemned political violence and said: ‘It is an attack on all of us. It is an attack on the American experiment. It is an attack on our ideals.
‘This cuts to the very foundation of who we are. Of who we have been and who we could be in better times.’
Viewers from across the country said they were moved by Cox’s words and many of them took to social media to praise the Republican for remaining poised in the face of tragedy.
One X user wrote: ‘In all honesty, Gov. Spencer Cox – R Utah… Has never really been on my radar… But he picked up a Big Fan today… He spoke Honestly, Transparently and with Compassion…Thank You Governor…’
Another said: ‘I hope every American listens to Governor Cox’s plea right now. I’m glad he’s saying this. And I pray this won’t fall on deaf ears.’
A third commended him: ‘It is, quite honestly, one of the most powerful speeches I’ve ever heard from a politician, or anyone, for that matter.’
Cox’s assured and lengthy speech contrasted with FBI chief Patel’s far shorter statement.
Patel appeared to claim credit for Robinson’s capture on behalf of his agency – despite the fact that he was turned in by family members.
He began: ‘This is what happens when you let good cops be cops.’
Patel called the work of the FBI and local police ‘historic’ noting the 33 hours it took for the suspect to be taken into custody.
He was friends with Kirk and appeared emotional as he spoke about his fallen friend: ‘Rest now brother, we have the watch. See you in valhalla.’
Valhalla refers to the realm in Norse mythology where warriors go after they die.
He thanked the work of law enforcement: ‘I want to thank the FBI for giving is the resources we need to operate in this space to bring this sort of justice at this sort of speed.’
Some viewers seemed less impressed with his speech, with one X user writing: ‘Kash Patel says they found the suspect because “that’s what happens when you let cops be cops.”
‘The FBI completely bumbled the investigation for two days and the suspects own father turned him in.’
Cox returned to the podium after Patel’s emotional sign-off.
He encouraged Americans to open up conversations with one another rather than resorting to the violence that took Kirk’s life.
He said: ‘We will never be able to solve all of the other problems, especially the violence problems that people are worried about, if we can’t have a clash of ideals safely and securely.
‘Especially those ideas with which you disagree. That’s why this matters so much.’
His emotions and transparency stood out to his fans, putting him on the radar of Americans outside of Utah.
‘Over the last 48 hours I have been as angry as I have ever been, as sad as I have ever been,’ he said.
‘And as anger pushed me to the brink it was actually Charlie’s words pulled me back.’
He highlighted some of Kirk’s most quotable moments: ‘When people stop talking. That’s when you get violence.’
‘Always forgive your enemies, nothing annoys them so much.’
He called the killing a ‘watershed moment in American history’ and encouraged his fellow Americans to look inward as they continue to respond to the political violence that took place against Kirke.
In a less comprehensive moment, Cox admitted to praying that the killer was not from Utah: ‘For 33 hours I was praying that if this had to happen here that it wouldn’t be one of us. That somebody drove from another state, that somebody came from another country. Sadly that prayer was not answered.’
But he continued: ‘History dictates if this is a turning point for our country.
‘But every single one of us gets to choose right now if this is a turning point for us. We get to make decisions.
‘We get to have our agency. And I desperately call on every American, Republican, Democrat, liberal, progressive, conservative, liberal all of us to follow what Charlie taught me.’
