The cultural rot on the left was put on full display when liberal podcaster Jennifer Welch gleefully amplified a clip of a protester celebrating the assassination of Charlie Kirk and dared Democratic leaders to “get on board” with that kind of rage or be targeted next. That is not debate or protest — it is a trophy dance over the murder of a fellow American and an open invitation to more political violence from the fringes.
What makes this uglier is Welch’s contempt for decency; she played the No Kings clip and then openly praised the woman who said she was “glad” Kirk was dead, using that as a rallying cry against the so-called Democratic establishment. This isn’t isolated talk radio trash — it’s mainstream leftist media normalizing the idea that conservatives should be wiped off the public square.
Into that cesspool stepped Riley Gaines, who has built her reputation defending the sanctity of women’s sports and calling out the left’s double standards. When Welch and her co-hosts attacked Gaines and openly laughed at the protesters celebrating Kirk’s death, conservative voices pushed back — and Dave Rubin shared the exchange in a DM clip to show just how vile the left’s new tone has become.
The reaction from reasonable Americans should be swift and unforgiving: platforms that amplify calls for violence and hosts who gloat over murder must be held accountable. The mainstream media can’t pretend this is “just commentary” when podcasters use real footage of people rejoicing at an assassination and then exhort elected leaders to align with that sentiment.
This is also a warning about campuses and public venues becoming breeding grounds for violent rhetoric; conservative speakers and organizers are now legitimate targets, and women like Riley Gaines face real threats simply for defending biological women’s rights and fair competition. If universities and platforms keep enabling the radical fringe, free speech and public safety will keep eroding until common-sense Americans make them pay at the ballot box and in the marketplace of ideas.
Riley Gaines showed the backbone every patriot should admire by standing up to the mob and refusing to be shamed into silence. Conservatives must meet this moment with equal conviction — defend our athletes, defend free speech, and refuse to normalize political murder as a form of “protest.”
If the left’s new leadership tolerates or applauds calls for our deaths, then the rest of us have a duty to expose them, withdraw our support, and make sure voters understand what their party has become. This isn’t about partisan gamesmanship; it’s about preserving a civil society where disagreement doesn’t mean death, and where courageous voices like Riley Gaines aren’t driven off the stage by cowards and zealots.
