ROOKE: Republicans Are Wasting Their Small Window Of Opportunity

American voters have been extremely patient with Republicans, but in the wake of the brutal assassination of Charlie Kirk, the time for speeches and bloviating is over. We want action.

The voter mandate passed to Republicans in November 2024 has been talked about ad nauseam, which makes the GOP’s inability to use the power we gave them even more frustrating. The biggest question in the room is: When does the work for the American people start?

There are moments in time that can become catalysts for change. We saw that with Vice President JD Vance’s closing remarks Monday while hosting “The Charlie Kirk Show.” He rose to the occasion, making the point that calls for unity with people who would cheer for violence against their political opponent will fall on deaf ears because the Trump administration is intent on pursuing the radical left.

If we want to stop political violence like what happened to Charlie Kirk, we have to be honest about the people who are celebrating it and the people who are financing it.

My closing remarks on today’s episode of the Charlie Kirk Show: pic.twitter.com/pEAqbAL3yr

— JD Vance (@JDVance) September 15, 2025

In contrast, you have U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s comments about free speech versus hate speech on the Kate Miller Podcast. It’s hard to label Bondi’s remarks as anything other than irresponsible. (Sign up for Mary Rooke’s weekly newsletter here!)

“There’s free speech and then there’s hate speech, and there is no place, especially now, especially after what happened to Charlie, in our society,” she said, adding, “We will absolutely target you, go after you, if you are targeting anyone with hate speech. And that’s across the aisle.”

It’s so obviously the incorrect answer here for the simple fact that she used left-wing terminology to answer a straightforward question. There is no such thing as hate speech. The left uses wordplay to trap us into their box, and Bondi played right into their hand. For thousands of Americans who have been victimized by the left’s “hate speech” attacks, they see Bondi’s official use of the term that ruined their lives as a betrayal.

She qualified her answer this morning with a statement, saying in part, “Hate speech that crosses the line into threats of violence is NOT protected by the First Amendment. It’s a crime. For far too long, we’ve watched the radical left normalize threats, call for assassinations, and cheer on political violence. That era is over.”

Hate speech that crosses the line into threats of violence is NOT protected by the First Amendment. It’s a crime. For far too long, we’ve watched the radical left normalize threats, call for assassinations, and cheer on political violence. That era is over.

Under 18 U.S.C. §…

— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) September 16, 2025

Bondi’s choice to double down on using the term “hate speech” is almost an admission that she doesn’t understand what needs to be done or said in this moment. We are fighting for our country’s survival here while it’s under attack by far-left organizations, radicalizing our citizens to murder their political opponents. It undercuts our ability to go after these organizations if she is willingly and repeatedly using their language.

Trump told reporters Monday in the Oval Office that he has instructed Bondi to look into racketeering (RICO) charges against left-wing groups funding agitators. Fine, good, go after billionaires funding these organizations with financial charges, but we need more. Americans want these organizations to be labeled as domestic terrorists. (ROOKE: Charlie Kirk’s Death Exposes Democrats As The Amnesiac Cherry Pickers They Are)

But the disappointment for Republicans is more than Bondi. Voters gave elected Republicans control of both chambers of Congress and the Executive Branch. President Donald Trump is holding up his end of the bargain. We wanted strong action against narco terrorists, illegal immigration, left-wing ideology, and crime. In every way, his administration has worked tirelessly to give voters tangible wins on these issues.

So, where are Senate and House Republicans? We gave them power, and they are wasting it. If Democrats had the same mandate, every one of their president’s nominees would be through. Senate Republicans have a 256-person backlog of presidential nominees awaiting confirmation. Since January, the GOP has only confirmed 125 of Trump’s picks. This doesn’t count the 280 positions for which Trump has yet to nominate a candidate.

It’s not hard to track this. Any layperson can click The Washington Post’s tracker for Trump’s open government positions. Of course, Senate Majority Leader John Thune has repeatedly claimed that the GOP would be invoking the “nuclear option,” which would allow them to confirm Trump’s appointments in batches of 48 at a time. What are they waiting for? Why has it taken so long to get this enacted? Unless stalling for the midterms and a possible change in party control is the point.

Time’s up for Democrat obstructionists.

The Senate’s confirmation process will be restored and this institution will begin to fully function again. pic.twitter.com/BaNFTijqcF

— Leader John Thune (@LeaderJohnThune) September 11, 2025

Now we turn our ire on House Republicans. Once again, our federal government is on the verge of shutting down. Federal spending is on an uncontrollable path, and Republicans plan to stick a band-aid on the bleeding with another short-term continuing resolution (CR) to extend funding at current levels through Nov. 20.

Outside of the additional $58 million in funding Trump requested to protect executive and judicial branch officials following Kirk’s murder, the president has demanded that House Republicans pass a clean CR, meaning no Democrat input and no establishment pork. The House is expected to vote on the measure Sept. 17 or later in the week before recessing for Rosh Hashanah, with lawmakers returning Sept. 29, just two days before the expected shutdown.

Republicans have been given a reenergized base after the assassination of Charlie Kirk. His death was a shock to the system. Now we want Republicans to step up to the plate to get our priorities done. (Violence Took Charlie, But It Created Millions More Of Him)

The moment to show American voters that Republicans are wholly prepared for the moment has come. The GOP has once again been given a unique opportunity to wield power. Do it for your base. Do it for Charlie.

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