Secret Service Employee Put on Leave Over Kirk Comments
Memorials honoring Charlie Kirk have been held across the country and overseas, including in Berlin. Kirk was assassinated on Sept. 10, 2025. ( Ilkin Eskipehlivan /Anadolu via Getty Images)
A U.S. Secret Service employee has been placed on administrative leave after making a controversial social media post in response to the assassination of conservative commentator and activist Charlie Kirk.
Anthony Pough, an employee of the protective agency, made the remarks in a Facebook post on Thursday, criticizing those mourning Kirk’s death. His post came a day after the 31-year-old founder of Turning Point USA was fatally shot during a speaking event at Utah Valley University.
Pough’s post, first reported by RealClearPolitics, included a video clip of Kirk in which he had claimed that Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson and former Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) were “affirmative action picks” and “weren’t smart enough to get in on their own.” Pough wrote, “If you are mourning this guy .. delete me. He spewed hate and racism on his show.”
He added, “Especially when we should be mourning the innocent children killed in Colorado,” referring to a recent school shooting at Evergreen High School in which two students were seriously injured. “At the end of the day, you answer to GOD and speak things into existence. You can only circumvent karma, she doesn’t leave.”
The post remained online for several hours before being reported, and it reportedly caused concern within the Secret Service.
“The U.S. Secret Service will not tolerate any behavior which violates our code of conduct,” a spokesperson told The New York Post. “We are aware of the employee’s social media post from today, and the individual has been placed on administrative leave as we investigate the matter.”
Charlie Kirk was shot in the neck by an unidentified sniper during a Q&A session as part of his “American Comeback Tour.” He was transported to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Kirk is survived by his wife, Erika, and their two children.
In the aftermath of the assassination, tributes poured in from across the political spectrum. On Thursday, former President Donald Trump announced Kirk would be posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom—the nation’s highest civilian honor.
Pough, who has worked for the Secret Service for several years, had previously shared political opinions online. In past posts, he criticized the Trump administration and commented on issues related to race and diversity. In one instance earlier this year, he appeared to respond to Trump’s executive order targeting “anti-American” content in museums by writing, “You teach history so it doesn’t repeat itself. You delete it so it can…”
His post regarding Kirk is not the only criticism the conservative figure has received. Former MSNBC contributor and Bush-Cheney campaign strategist Matthew Dowd described Kirk as “a controversial figure” who “pushed hate speech aimed at certain groups.” Dowd was later dismissed by the network following public backlash over his comments.
The Secret Service has been under heightened scrutiny following several high-profile security failures. Most recently, an agent was suspended after a visitor at Trump National Golf Club in Washington, D.C. entered with an undetected firearm. The agency has also faced criticism over past assassination attempts against Trump, including a July 2024 incident in Butler, Pennsylvania, where a bullet narrowly missed killing the former president.
The investigation into Pough’s conduct remains ongoing, as does the search for Kirk’s killer.
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