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On Monday evening, a major campaign to track down, threaten, and target individuals perceived as celebrating the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk was endorsed by the US Vice-President.

While guest-hosting on Kirk’s podcast, Vance declared that those who “see someone celebrating Charlie’s assassination” should “call them out”. He further added: “In fact, call their employer. We do not believe in political violence, but we strongly support in civility, and there is no civility in the applause of political assassination.”

In the past week, multiple workers across various industries—ranging from university faculty to an airline pilot—were terminated due to their remarks about the commentator’s killing.

An anonymous website that began collecting submissions of critical “political extremism” claimed it had received more than 63,000 submissions. Originally named “Expose Charlie’s Murderers”, the platform changed its name on Monday to the “Kirk Memorial Initiative”.

Allies of former President Trump have sought to connect the assassination—absent proof—to what they label as a organized leftwing “terror” movement that supports political violence. These claims have raised fears of a draconian response on expression.

On the show, Vance stated that the government would “aim to break down the institutions that encourage aggression and terrorism in our own country”.

Joining the Vice-President on the podcast was Trump’s deputy chief of staff, who pledged to crack down on what he referred to as a “vast homegrown extremist operation” he blamed for Kirk’s death.

“I solemnly swear,” he stated, “we are going to use all available tools at the DOJ, DHS, and across this government to locate, disrupt, dismantle, and destroy these networks.”

Ideological affiliations of the assailant remain unclear, and the United States has experienced a wave of violence in the past few years that has affected both liberals and Republicans.

However, the broad effort has also affected those who voiced criticism of the deceased commentator, a Christian nationalist with a history of sexist and bigoted remarks. A number have simply repeated Kirk’s own words or been targeted for failing to grieve his death.

An example of a target was military officer a service member, who shared the commentator on the date of his killing. This included his referring to the Civil Rights Act as a “monster” that “became an anti-white weapon”, and his claim that certain firearm fatalities are the price of the Second Amendment.

GOP-led states such as Florida, the Sooner State, and Texas have initiated inquiries into teachers accused of making offensive comments following last week’s killing. Meanwhile, the Armed Forces has encouraged members of the public to report those who “celebrate or mock” the killing, and confirmed that several service members have faced dismissal for their remarks.

Appeals for a crackdown by Vance and additional Trump allies have evoked recollections of some of the darkest chapters in American the past.

“The government involvement in this brings it nearer to looking like McCarthyism,” commented Adam Goldstein of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, referring to the 1950s campaign to eliminate leftists that resulted in unfounded accusations and ruined careers. “That was hardly a shining moment for free expression.”

Liberal figures have themselves been victims of political violence recently, such as the summer killing of a Minnesota state lawmaker and her spouse, and the 2022 beating of ex-congresswoman a Democratic leader’s partner in their San Francisco home.