{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://sewell.house.gov/2025/9/rep-sewell-statement-on-charlie-kirk-resolution", "Rep. Sewell Statement on Charlie Kirk Resolution", "2025-09-19", "2025", "2025-09", "Democrat", "House", "AL", "Terri A. Sewell", "S001185", "sewell.house.gov", "sewell", "https://sewell.house.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "Washington D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell (AL-07) released the following statement after voting against a Republican resolution celebrating the political ideology of Charlie Kirk:\n\n\u201cI condemn the horrific assassination of Charlie Kirk in the strongest possible terms. There should be no place for political violence in America. All Americans\u2014including Charlie Kirk\u2014should have the right to express their views, however controversial, without fear of violence. I mourn with his wife and children during this painful time.\n\n\u201cIf condemning violence was the purpose of today\u2019s resolution, it would have my full support. That\u2019s why I signed on to a resolution led by Rep. Marc Veasey condemning Charlie Kirk\u2019s assassination and all political violence. I would have also supported the Senate resolution which passed unanimously earlier this week. In a clear effort to further divide Americans and Members of Congress, unfortunately, the resolution House Republicans brought to the floor today included divisive language glorifying the viewpoints Charlie Kirk espoused.\n\n\u201cCharlie Kirk called the passage of the Civil Rights Act a mistake. He has repeatedly disparaged the accomplishments of African Americans and insulted our intelligence. He said \u2018Blacks were actually better off in the 1940s\u2026 They committed less crimes.\u2019 As a Black woman and the representative of our nation\u2019s civil rights district, I cannot vote to celebrate an ideology that runs counter to the values that so many of our fellow Alabamians fought, bled, and died for.\n\n\u201cTo be clear, political disagreements never warrant political violence, and I wholeheartedly condemn his murder and all acts of violence in recent years and throughout our history. We can, at the same time, condemn political violence without abandoning our obligation to speak out against ideas that conflict with our values. I call on all our political leaders\u2014including President Trump and Vice President Vance\u2014to stop the inflammatory rhetoric and turn down the temperature.\n\n\u201cMy prayers are with the Kirk family and all Americans at this difficult time.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:10:29Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://sewell.house.gov/2025/9/rep-sewell-statement-on-charlie-kirk-resolution"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 3.3183619379997253, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}