AARON PATRICK: Donald Trump may need divine help to get the US through this crisis

Responding to the assassination of Charlie Kirk, the New York Times declared today that political violence “is antithetical to America”. Sadly, facts suggest otherwise. The violence endemic to American life has become common to its politics.

Over the past decade the victims include a murdered Minnesota state politician and her husband; Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, whose home was set alight; Donald Trump, the target of two assassination attempts during the 2024 election campaign; the badly bashed husband of Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi; four people shot at a Republican baseball practice session in Washington in 2017; and the Congress, which was ransacked in 2021.

Until today, among the advocates protecting the Western world’s most liberal gun laws was Mr Kirk, the 31-year-old leader of what might be called the Trump Youth. A few months ago, he said: “It’s worth it to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment”.

The Second Amendment to the constitution, which projects gun ownership, represents one of the primary differences between American and Australian conservative politics. No mainstream figures on the right of Australian politics seek to loosen gun laws that have all-but eliminated mass shootings since the 1996 Port Arthur Massacre.

Oblivion

In the US, where there are 120.5 guns for every 100 residents, the mix of freely available weapons and deeply polarised politics is driving political violence. So too is a sense among many Americans the country is sliding towards oblivion.

Republicans blame an urban decay they see rooted in overly liberal social policies, including drug legalisation, weak criminal-law enforcement and mass immigration. Democrats are horrified by the Trump Republicans’ strong-arm approach to government, including a disrespect for the judicial system, tax cuts for the wealthy and crank health policies.

Flawed democratic institutions exacerbate the problem. About 85 per cent of Congressional districts are uncompetitive, which means voters have almost no chance of affecting the outcome. Voluntary voting increases the potency of negative campaign and well-funded interest groups.

While individuals’ motivations are difficult to determine, violence is often the refuge of the powerless. No party can claim moral superiority. The victims come from both sides of politics.

Ironic

One irony of Mr Kirk’s death is that he led a conservative campaign to protect free speech on university campuses. His assassination, by an unknown sniper while talking to intellectually engaged students, may make other activists reluctant to advance ideas unpopular among liberally minded college students. Both sides will be poorer for the loss of debate.

There is little or no prospect US lawmakers will agree guns make the problem worse. The focus has already turned to punishment rather than prevention. President Donald Trump, whose family had a close personal and political alliance with Mr Kirk, promised a vigorous manhunt against the killer and any groups that may have helped him.

With his administration’s record of pursuing enemies of the state, including the recent summary execution of suspected drug runners at sea, it is hard to question his resolve. The prospect of federal agents banging through doors with guns drawn will add to the sense of crisis in the US. More violence may follow, creating a cycle that no-one can predict where will end.

Mr Trump is not a religious man, but he may need divine help to steer his troubled nation through the coming days.