The Ken Paxton who took to the stage at the Lyceum Theatre at the University of North Texas on Monday sounded somehow softer than the Ken Paxton who announced last month that his office was investigating the university.
The Texas attorney general launched an investigation into UNT's response to campus reactions to the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk in September. UNT student Mary-Catherine Hallmark posted a video on TikTok that went viral, showing a confrontation she had with another student she said celebrated the death of Kirk, the co-founder of Turning Point USA.
While the viral video didn't show any students cheering, Hallmark said the celebration happened when she wasn't recording, and that some students said "the same thing needs to happen to Donald Trump."
"You know, there's been a little controversy here," Paxton said Monday evening at UNT. "And I really am so appreciative of Mary-Catherine, her courage and the courage of other students that are willing to stand up and exercise their right to free speech."
Paxton told the audience that students who allegedly celebrated Kirk's assassination were exercising their First Amendment rights, something he hasn't said in his press releases about the campus controversy. He reserved his jabs for the UNT faculty "who are very liberal."
"And that's why I appreciate so much what Mary-Catherine did by speaking out against speech that was actually calling for the death of a president, or celebrating the death of Charlie Kirk," Paxton said. "That's free speech. But it's also sickening. I mean, somebody has just been killed. For those kinds of thoughts to be exercised, with no discretion and no thoughtfulness for what that does to people around you, and for ... the family members of Charlie Kirk."
Paxton's office hasn't named any faculty member or administrator in the investigation.
Hallmark, who spoke at the event, said the professor of the class asked her to leave, a move she felt was unfair. Hallmark also said she'd received numerous threats after posting several videos about the confrontation, and has had UNT police accompany her to classes for protection.
Police attended the event, with one officer accompanying a dog that could detect weapons. Turning Point USA has increased security at its events around the country since Kirk's murder at a college campus in Utah.
Paxton advised students to heed the biblical story of Joseph in the Book of Genesis, who rose from slavery to power in Egypt, and to consider Kirk's example.
"As you all face your lives, I want you to think about what Charlie Kirk's message was, the message that I just told you about," Paxton said. "What Charlie did took courage. What you all are doing here takes courage. And I can tell you, if you want to live a life of significance, a life that really does matter, it goes beyond just having fun or just taking care of the basic needs.
"I would encourage you to live a life of courage, of faith," he said. "Make your life matter. Charlie Kirk would tell you the same thing. I don't know if he can hear us. But I know what he would say to you. I think he would say those exact words: Make your life matter."
The event was mostly uneventful, though university staff reportedly allowed a protester to attend but required him to discard a sign. Some audience members shouted expletives at UNT Turning Point USA President Anthony Vita, and some laughed and clapped when BlazeTV host Sarah Gonzales said Marxist ideology had claimed American universities. One person shouted at Gonzales when she warned the audience that radical Islamic clergy and adherents in America are playing a "long game" to depose the West from global dominance.
Hallmark hasn't responded to repeated messages from the Denton Record-Chronicle requesting comment, and Vita declined to take questions after the event Monday. Neither Turning Point USA nor its UNT chapter has responded to multiple requests for comment.
LUCINDA BREEDING-GONZALES can be reached at 940-566-6877 and cbreeding@dentonrc.com.
