{"id":1779,"date":"2025-09-14T20:13:30","date_gmt":"2025-09-14T20:13:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/?p=1779"},"modified":"2025-09-14T20:13:30","modified_gmt":"2025-09-14T20:13:30","slug":"us-secret-service-agent-put-on-leave-for-karma-post-after-charlie-kirks-murder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/?p=1779","title":{"rendered":"US Secret Service agent put on leave for ‘karma’ post after Charlie Kirk’s murder"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Secret Service agent was put on immediate leave after posting disparaging remarks on social media about\u00a0slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk, the federal law enforcement agency confirmed.<\/p>\n

Kirk became the victim of what officials called a “political assassination” on Wednesday, Sept. 10, while speaking to roughly 3,000 people at Utah Valley University’s campus. Authorities arrested\u00a0Tyler Robinson, 22, on Friday, Sept. 12, and he is facing charges of aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm and obstruction of justice, according to court records obtained by USA TODAY. Prosecutors are expected to formally file charges against Robinson at his first court appearance on Tuesday, Sept. 16, according to Christopher Ballard of the Utah County Attorney\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n

Following Kirk’s murder, many gave their condolences, including\u00a0President Donald Trump, while others did the opposite and shared negative opinions about the 31-year-old Turning Point USA co-founder. One of the naysayers was Anthony Pough, a Secret Service agent who wrote in a Facebook post on Sept. 10 that Kirk “spewed hate and racism on his show,” which is called “The Charlie Kirk Show,”\u00a0CBS News\u00a0and\u00a0Fox News\u00a0reported.<\/p>\n

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Charlie Kirk remembered in memorials: Conservative activist was shot while speaking in Utah<\/h2>\n
Supporters visit a memorial for Charlie Kirk at the Turning Point Headquarters in Phoenix on Sept. 11, 2025.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

“At the end of the day, you answer to GOD, and speak things into existence. You can only circumvent karma, she doesnt leave,” Pough’s post about Kirk read, per the outlets.<\/p>\n

In a statement emailed to USA TODAY on Saturday, Sept. 13, the U.S. Secret Service said the agency “will not tolerate behavior that violates our code of conduct. This employee was immediately put on administrative leave, and an investigation has begun.”<\/p>\n

USA TODAY could not immediately reach Pough for comment on Saturday, Sept. 13.<\/p>\n

Senator calls for Secret Service agent’s ‘immediate termination’<\/h2>\n

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-TN, called for Pough’s immediate termination in a letter to Secret Service Director Sean Curran on Thursday, Sept. 11,\u00a0according to her X post.<\/p>\n

“As our nation mourns the devastating loss of Charlie Kirk, a rogue\u00a0@SecretService\u00a0agent posted on Facebook suggesting that he deserved to be murdered,” said Blackburn’s X post, accompanied by a screenshot of her letter to Curran. “I am calling for this agent\u2019s immediate termination. It’s time to root out the rot in the Secret Service.”<\/p>\n

In a memo sent to Secret Service agents on Thursday, Sept. 11, Curran said, “We swear an oath to those we protect to conduct ourselves with the highest standards of conduct on and off duty,” according to CBS News.<\/p>\n

“When our actions draw public attention for the wrong reasons, we fall short of that duty and compromise the trust essential to fulfill our mission,” Curran’s memo continued, per the outlet. “We must operate every day without bias towards political affiliation. We owe it to ourselves and those we are sworn to protect. Any distractions, otherwise, will not be tolerated.”<\/p>\n

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Sen. Marsha Blackburn speaks in an interview after a roundtable focused on fighting juvenile crime through afterschool programs with local and state officials, advocates, the YMCA, and Boys and Girls Club representatives on Aug. 11, 2025, at PURE Academy in Memphis, Tenn.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Multiple people fired over anti-Charlie Kirk comments<\/h2>\n

The Secret Service is not the only entity that has\u00a0suspended or fired employees\u00a0over comments made following Kirk’s murder.<\/p>\n

Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) fired Laura Sosh-Lightsy, a dean at the college, for saying in a social media post that she had “zero sympathy” for Kirk in the wake of his killing.<\/p>\n

“The comments by this employee, who worked in a position of trust directly with students, were inconsistent with our values and have undermined the university\u2019s credibility and reputation with our students, faculty, staff and the community at large,”\u00a0MTSU President Sidney McPhee’s statement\u00a0reads. “This employee has been fired effective immediately. We extend our deepest sympathies to the Kirk family.”<\/p>\n

In addition to Sosh-Lightsy, a\u00a0Marine was fired\u00a0over an anti-Charlie Kirk post,\u00a0MSNBC fired analyst Matthew Dowd\u00a0over on-air comments he made after the shooting, Ole Miss fired an employee for comments regarding the assassination, and the Carolina Panthers fired the team’s communications coordinator\u00a0over Instagram posts apparently referencing the activist’s slaying.<\/p>\n

Also, a reporter for\u00a0Floridapolitics.com\u00a0was suspended for texting Rep. Randy Fine, a Republican from Florida, a\u00a0question about gun control reform\u00a0shortly after\u00a0Kirk\u00a0was killed.<\/p>\n

“No matter how private your life is, everybody has an audience,” Karen North, a professor of digital social media at the University of Southern California and a psychologist,\u00a0told USA TODAY in 2024\u00a0in the wake of that assassination attempt. “And there\u2019s always an audience for people misbehaving.”<\/p>\n

Contributing: Julia Gomez, Melina Khan, Phaedra Trethan & Natalie Neysa Alund\/ USA TODAY<\/em><\/p>\n

Jonathan Limehouse covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at JLimehouse@gannett.com<\/em>.<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:\u00a0Secret Service agent put on leave for anti-Charlie Kirk Facebook post<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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