House Speaker Mike Johnson on Charlie Kirk’s death and Russia sanctions

(CBS, KYMA) - House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) appeared on Face the Nation Sunday.

Speaking to Major Garrett from Baton Rouge, Johnson reflected on "a difficult week the country" following the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

"There's a mixture of, you know, anger and sadness and fear, frankly, on the part of a lot of people. It cast a large shadow across the country and the nation's capital. But what I do know is that my good friend Charlie would not want any of us to be consumed by despair. He would want us to go forward boldly, that was his message, and to do it in love. And I think that, I hope, is the message that continues in the days ahead."

Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA), Speaker of the House

Garrett asked Johnson if there will be "a method to forge any sort of bipartisan remembrance of Charlie Kirk" on Capitol Hill, and Johnson said:

"There will be. You know, we had a moment of prayer and silent reflection on the floor on Wednesday within an hour of his passing. There will be, I participated in a large vigil here in Baton Rouge at LSU, my alma mater, on Friday night. Tonight, we'll have a big, I hope, bipartisan prayer and reflection vigil in Capitol Hill at the Kennedy Center. There will be a members reflection and prayer moment that I'll lead on Monday night. This will continue. I think that the country needs to see leaders in Congress and leaders with platforms all around the country speaking truth and bringing calm to the situation. We should appeal, as Lincoln reminded us so many years ago, to the better angels among us all. And I think this is a real moment for America...And I think one of the ways to do that is to adopt the manner of Charlie Kirk because while he loved vigorous debate and he believed in the free marketplace of ideas, and advancing truth boldly, he also was motivated by love for his fellow man because he never hated the person on the other side of the table. And I think everyone would do well to be reminded of that model."

During the interview, Garrett and Johnson talked about potential sanctions against Russia, with Garrett asking Johnson where he stands on it, and the speaker said, "I do believe that desperate times call for desperate measures, and I think appropriate sanctions on Russia are far overdue. I mean, I think there's a big appetite for that in Congress, so we're willing to work with the White House and our Senate colleagues in the House to get that done and I'm anxious to do it, personally."

Garrett followed up by asking Johnson if he's waiting for President Donald Trump to give the green light or if Congress can act on their own volition, to which Johnson said:

"Congress really can't do this on its own volition because, of course, the President would need to sign whatever we do into law. So it has to be a partnership, but we defer to the commander in chief. I mean, the President is a strong and bold leader on the world stage. He has brokered peace around the world and other conflicts in a way that no one before him has been able to do, and so we're trusting that he can use that same force and that same approach to bring about, finally, an end to this war in Ukraine. Everyone in America wants that bloodshed to end, and President Trump is forcing that."

To watch more of Garrett's interview with Johnson, click here.