After Charlie Kirk's murder, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox grapples with rising political violence
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox urged Americans to condemn political violence as inflammatory rhetoric escalated in the wake of conservative activist Charlie Kirk's assassination.
The 50-year-old Republican was angry, nauseous and in disbelief when he called the White House to report Kirk had died after the Sept. 10 shooting at Utah Valley University. Addressing the public, he decried political violence against both Democrats and Republicans and focused on the opportunity for Americans to disagree in non-violent ways.
"I'm not asking anybody to hold hands and hug it out," Cox told 60 Minutes. "I'm not asking for that. I'm trying to get people to stop shooting each other. That's it."
Political violence and the assassination of Charlie Kirk
The assassination of Kirk was the kind of attack now happening every couple of months or so. In April, the Democratic governor of Pennsylvania and his family escaped after their home was firebombed. In June, Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband were killed, and state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife were wounded in politically-motivated shootings. A year earlier, there was an assasination attempt made against President Trump, who was then on the campaign trail.
Cox was shocked that political violence had occurred in his home state.
"The video was already out. There was no fog of war," Cox said. "There was no doubt what had happened. That terrible awful video that I wish I had not seen. I hate, again, social media, that almost every person in this country, including our young people, have seen that video on a loop over and over and over again. And I can't unsee it. I can't stop seeing it. Every time I close my eyes, that's what I see."
The governor sent an aide to the hospital, who reported that Kirk was dead. Cox said he felt sickness, disbelief and anger when he heard the news.
"Our nation is broken"
In the aftermath of Kirk's death, Cox recalled recent incidents of political violence targeting both parties.
"Our nation is broken. We've had political assassinations recently in Minnesota. We had an attempted assassination of the governor of Pennsylvania. And we had an attempted assassination on a presidential candidate and former president of the United States and now current president of the United States," Cox said during a press conference. "Nothing I say can unite us as a country. Nothing I can say right now can fix what is broken."
Cox said he believes the future of the country is at stake.
"We just need every single person in this country to think about where we are and where we want to be," Cox said during a press conference.
He blames social media for the current division, calling it a "cancer."
"It is taking all of our worst impulses and putting them on steroids. It is driving us to division. It is driving us to hate," Cox told 60 Minutes.
Social media algorithms, he said, "are absolutely destroying us."
"Once they know what your political leanings are, then it's like a pack of wolves that just attack," Cox said. "We have this collective problem that we can't solve because we're all sucked in, and we don't know how to get out."
Disagree better
While some politicians are taking a different approach, Cox is calling on Americans to tamp down inflammatory rhetoric and debate with civility. He's focused on ending political violence.
"And I think what I'm doing and what I'm saying is the best way to do that. Some people will disagree with that and that's OK," Cox said. "We should have these debates as a society. I'm not always right. I've made mistakes. Other politicians, I think, are making mistakes right now in trying to elevate the temperature. But I'm going to just keep having these conversations."
Cox has, for years, focused on what he calls ways to "disagree better." He became chair of the bipartisan National Governors Association in 2023. There, he launched the "Disagree Better" campaign. He explains it doesn't mean dropping differences.
"In fact, it's the exact opposite of that," Cox said.
Twenty-three governors from both parties have joined the "Disagree Better" campaign. Cox has brought the concept to events nationwide, and he's often joined by Democratic governors, including New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. 60 Minutes sat down with the two governors at Notre Dame last week.
Cox and Lujan Grisham say governors understand something that Washington does not.
"We like to say that potholes aren't partisan. And governors do have to deliver actual results," Cox said. "I think there's, sadly, in D.C., we've seen this performative politics, and much less substance."
Lujan Grisham was one of the first people to call Cox the day Kirk was murdered.
"We should be condemning, at every chance we get, political violence. Our democracy falters when we don't," Lujan Grisham said. "This is an American. This is a person. This is a person who lost his life in free speech."
Moving forward
Cox recently returned to Utah Valley University, where Kirk was killed, and told a crowd of students that they couldn't count on politicians. Change, he said, must come from them. He pointed toward an American flag.
"That flag, that flag doesn't represent any single group. That flag - it doesn't represent one part of our country and not another part of our country," he told the crowd.
Cox said he hopes treating all people with dignity and respect will help "get our country back."
"I'm desperately looking for more architects and fewer arsonists. Again, it's so easy to burn down and tear down and we've got too much of that today," Cox said.
He acknowledged that it's possible that his message is naive.
"[But] naiveté with some passion can change the world," he said. "It's probably the only thing that ever has."