Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) faced immense criticism for saying President Trump probably should tone down his rhetoric following the horrific shooting of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk. ”I mean, there is a lot of rhetoric. And the president himself engages in it — he called it a hostile act to co-sponsor the Epstein resolution,” Massie told The Hill. “I think that’s ridiculous rhetoric,” he continued, saying “it’s amusing.” “It doesn’t offend me that he’s over the top with the rhetoric, but some people take it literally, and he should probably tone that down himself,” Massie added. JUST IN: Congressman Thomas Massie (R-KY) calls on President Trump to tone down the rhetoric after assassination of Charlie Kirk. "There is a lot of rhetoric. And the president himself engages in it…he should probably tone that down himself." pic.twitter.com/JjBDRnFLoF — Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) September 11, 2025 More from The Hill: Massie has often been at odds with his party, refusing to back GOP priorities that would raise the debt limit, including Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill.” In response, Trump said Massie was “not MAGA” and has encouraged someone to primary him. “Thomas Massie, the worst Republican Congressman, and an almost guaranteed NO VOTE each and every time, is an Embarrassment to Kentucky,” Trump wrote in one post on Truth Social in July. “He’s lazy, slow moving, and totally disingenuous — A real loser!” He added, “Never has anything positive to add. Looking for someone good to run against this guy, someone I can Endorse and vigorously campaign for!” The feud has further escalated after the Kentucky Republican filed a discharge petition earlier this month on a resolution to release the Epstein files, an effort that is inching closer to a sufficient number of signatures to force a vote. Several X users blasted Massie for his comments [EXPLICIT LANGUAGE]: BREAKING: Rep. Thomas Massie just called for PRESIDENT TRUMP to "TONE DOWN" his rhetoric in reeponde to Charlie Kirk's assassination. The issue is NOT President Trump, Thomas. The issue is the VIOLENT Left. It is disgraceful to respond to this tragedy this way. pic.twitter.com/sXU80pxSJR — Bo Loudon (@BoLoudon) September 11, 2025 My God… Thomas Massie says President Trump should tone down his Rhetoric@RepThomasMassie you are a piece of shit for this dude. pic.twitter.com/3NLfGwRHBZ — MJTruthUltra (@MJTruthUltra) September 11, 2025 Thomas Massie needs to seriously fuck off. He does this "well actually, I'm MORE based than Trump" shtick and ends up sounding like a total resistlib over Trump 's "rhetoric" Even Cenk Uygur and John Fetterman offered a better response to yesterday than this clown. https://t.co/9iJ0A4KIZi — Red Eagle Politics (@RedEaglePatriot) September 11, 2025 HuffPost noted: Authorities have said they don’t yet have a suspect or motive in the killing, but the president has blamed the “radical left.” “We have radical left lunatics out there and we just have to beat the hell out of them,” Trump said on Thursday. Kirk, 31, was shot and killed while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University, leaving behind a wife and two young children. Trump isn’t the only one delivering heated rhetoric as tempers flared in the House earlier this week. “Well, emotions are raw, because a lot of us knew Charlie Kirk personally and had interacted with him,” Massie told The Hill. “And so, I give everybody a pass here.” He added: “I don’t think you can blame anybody for what they say in the next 24 or 48 hours, but I think it’ll settle down, and hopefully it settles down to a calmer place than it was before.”