SC Republicans called to fire over Kirk posts. What they say about free speech
In the wake of the assassination of political activist Charlie Kirk, social media posts by employees of Clemson University brought national attention to the public university. Activism by campus Republicans drew attention from local and national politicians, ultimately leading the Upstate university to fire the three staff members.
Leading the charge have been some high-profile early front runners in the race for governor of South Carolina. State Attorney General Alan Wilson, Rep. Nancy Mace, Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette and Rep. Ralph Norman all have a history of championing free speech causes. But in the wake of Kirk’s death, Evette has supported the firing of the Clemson employees over their social media posts, while Wilson, Mace and Norman all directly called for them to be terminated.
Clemson wasn’t alone in dismissing an employee in the wake of Kirk’s assassination. A part-time instructor at the Union satellite campus of the University of South Carolina was fired for a ‘vulgar” social media comment. Mace had called him out on social media for a comment he made in response to an article about a state representative pushing to have a road renamed after Kirk.
In responses to The State and in public statements, these politicians have largely denied that this represents a change in the limits of speech. Instead, they have tried to draw a distinction between free speech and what they’ve broadly characterized as the reckless glorification of an assassination by government employees.
What the Clemson professors said
In the days following Kirk’s murder, two assistant professors at Clemson and one staff member shared or made posts on their personal social media making light of or even appearing to celebrate Kirk’s death.
Josh Bregy, an assistant professor in the environmental and earth sciences department shared a post that characterized Kirk’s death as “karma” for the activist’s position that some deaths were worth having the second amendment.
Melvin Earl Villaver, an assistant professor in the college of arts and humanities posted “this was such a beautiful day” and “Racism and White Supremacy age you” in reference to Kirk. He also shared a post saying that Kirk was “worried about DEI and DIED instead.”
Robin Newberry, an occupation health and safety officer at the university posted “F–k these Nazis” and called Kirk a “cancer” in reference to a headline stating that some on the right were calling for “retribution” after Kirk’s death. Newberry also made a post in support of Tyler Robinson, Kirk’s alleged killer, and Luigi Mangione, who allegedly killed healthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
Shortly after Clemson Republicans shared screenshots of the professor’s posts, Mace posted “Two Clemson professors have publicly cheered the assassination of Charlie Kirk… this cannot stand.”
What the candidates had to say, and what they said previously
In a series of posts on the social media platform, Mace called for the firings of the employees and said that Clemson should be defunded if it does not comply.
“No radicalization of our kids in colleges. Enough is enough,” Mace posted.
Mace has long positioned herself as an advocate for free speech and an opponent to censorship. In 2022, Mace posted, “Free speech is an important part of our democracy. Censoring and silencing those you disagree with is not a step in the right direction.”
When asked if Rep. Mace felt like her position on the firings was a contradiction, her spokesperson, Sydney Long, wrote, “Free speech isn’t a shield for taxpayer funded employees to glorify assassinations. If you can’t tell the difference, you’re part of the problem.”
Attorney General Alan Wilson soon let his position be known in a letter posted online advising the university that firing their employees was not a prosecutable offense.
In it, Wilson described the posts as “vile, repulsive and even incendiary” and could even “be taken as threatening.”
As attorney general, Wilson has staked a position as a defender of free speech. Earlier this year, he announced that he was co-leading an effort to “defend free speech rights of faith-based counselors.” He has also previously said that he was leading multi-state efforts to defend students’ free speech.
Both efforts primarily concerned the rights of individuals who were critical of transgender identity.
In a statement, Wilson drew a distinction between an “off-color” joke someone made in the past and “inflammatory” remarks that undermined the trust placed in their position.
“Freedom of speech does not mean an absence of responsibility. The professors at Clemson, or anyone else for that matter, shouldn’t be jailed for the reprehensible comments. But that doesn’t mean their behavior comes without consequences,” Wilson said.
Rep. Ralph Norman wrote on X that the posts from the employees “glorify political violence.” In a series of posts, Norman, who has previously criticized “cancel culture” targeting conservatives, called for the firings of the employees.
Explaining his position, Norman told The State, “We have a duty to the taxpayer to ensure their hard-earned money is spent appropriately. Subsidizing the salaries of people who support, glorify, or mock political assassination is an inadmissible use of taxpayer money.”
Along with Gov. Henry McMaster, Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette did not openly call for the public university’s employees to be fired.
In a response to The State, Evette’s spokesperson focused on politics being brought into the classroom.
South Carolinians “will not foot the bill for far-left, hateful propaganda from teachers or professors,” said Matt Goines, Evette’s communications director.
The “general sentiment” was that professors at Clemson were “intimidating the kids,” Evette said at a press conference earlier in the week. While her son is a freshman at the university, Evette said that she did not believe that any professors could change his principles.
This story was originally published September 19, 2025 at 5:00 AM.