President Donald Trump, speaking at an unspecified time during the reporting window, urged supporters to respond forcefully to perceived provocations, stating, "when they spit, you hit. Do whatever you want." Meanwhile, Democratic Tennessee Representative Steve Cohen criticized the federal National Guard deployment in Memphis, calling the troops "eye candy" that do not deter crime and harm the city's image and tourism industry, according to statements made during the past 14 minutes. Cohen, who represents Memphis, further asserted that the city's crime problem is improving and has been on an upward trajectory for the past two years. He noted that improvements predated the FBI's deployment of additional forces to the city. These comments come amidst ongoing discussions about national security and crime, including previous reports of President Trump's deployment of the National Guard to Memphis. Previous reports from the window indicated that the FBI confirmed a DNA match in the murder investigation of Charlie Kirk and that Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard characterized the assassination as "the definition of terrorism." There were also reports of bipartisan vigils for Kirk and political statements regarding his assassination. Additionally, discussions continued regarding congressional budget negotiations and the potential removal of slavery-related exhibits from national parks by the Trump administration.
