Politics
NEW: PA Democrats Under Fire For Celebrating Or Condoning Kirk Assassination
Bernville, Pennsylvania Mayor Shawn Raup-Konsavage, a Democrat, sparked outrage after saying that he is “glad” Turning Point USA founder is dead in a viral social media post.
“This is what MAGA represents, This is what Trump lowered flags for. If this represents you then I don’t want to hear that you are offended that I’m glad he is gone,” the Bernville mayor on Facebook alongside a clip of Kirk. The post soon went viral after it was amplified by Libs Of TikTok on X.
For Raup-Konsavage, this is not the first time he has made a controversial post on the topic of political violence.
Following the attempted assassination of then-candidate Donald Trump in July 2024 — which killed retired firefighter Corey Comperatore and wounded three others, including Trump — the Democrat mayor voiced his frustration over the would-be assassin’s failure. “Try harder,” he wrote.
“That Trump post that he had posted there was a lot of controversy with that in this town, a lot of hatred towards him after that,” Bernville resident Mark Rodriguez told local outlet WMFZ.
Wayne Lesher, the Bernville council vice president, said, “He said what he wanted to on his own Facebook page which is freedom of speech and all that, but I certainly don’t agree with it and I think what he said was terrible. You’re celebrating the death of somebody; that’s nothing to celebrate.”
Raup-Konsavage is not the only Pennsylvania Democrat who has found himself embroiled in controversy following Kirk’s September 10 assassination. Stephen Ropski, a councilman representing the Delaware County borough of Folcraft, poked fun at the act of political violence in a Facebook post of his own.
“BREAKING NEWS: Charlie Kirk loses gun debate,” the councilman posted in the aftermath of the shooting. The comment has been met with fury from local activists, as well as the Chester County Republican Party.
“And these are the same people with a ‘Hate Has No Home Here’ sign in their front yard,” the party said in response to Ropski’s comments. “The hypocrisy couldn’t be more obvious, and your posts will be permitted to stay to showcase your hypocrisy,”
In nearby Haverford, the township’s official Democratic Party page shared an article from The Nation that sanitized Kirk’s death and insinuated that he was responsible for his own murder. “We can be horrified by an assassination and at the same time acknowledge that Charlie Kirk’s racism and misogyny were immoral. Pretending otherwise whitewashes the truth and betrays the collective by masking how we got to this place in America,” the group posted alongside a link to an article titled, “Let’s Not Forget Who Charlie Kirk Really Was.”
The post was ultimately deleted after intense backlash.
“Earlier tonight, the Havertown Democrats (in their infinite wisdom) decided to post what you see below about Charlie Kirk. The post was quickly responded too with great backlash and has seen been deleted,” the Haverford Township Republican Party said in response. “As citizens of this township, we are asking you to call your respective commissioner below (all Ds) and demand an answer to your question… ‘Do you condemn or condone this?'” the post continued alongside contact information for the township’s commissioners.
