By Editor,Phillip Nieto

Copyright dailymail

Former President Barack Obama did not hold back criticism for how President Donald Trump has responded to the death of Charlie Kirk.

Obama said that Trump and his allies are weaponizing Kirk’s murder to fuel political division and silence opposition.

‘When I hear not just our current president, but his aides, who have a history of calling political opponents “vermin,” enemies who need to be “targeted,” that speaks to a broader problem that we have right now, and something that we’re going to have to grapple with — all of us,’ Obama said.

Kirk was murdered last week after being shot in the neck while speaking to college students at Utah Valley University. The alleged assassin, Tyler Robinson, was charged on Tuesday for Kirk’s murder.

Although Obama did not mention Trump specifically by name, it was clear he was referencing his successor.

The 44th president made his remarks during a public event in Erie, Pennsylvania at the annual Jefferson Education Society’s 17th global summit.

The Daily Mail reached out to the White House for a response.

Trump has blamed the ‘radical left’ for the recent increase in political violence across the country.

Prosecutors released text messages of Robinson confessing to his transgender lover to shooting Kirk because he ‘had enough of his hatred.’

Meanwhile, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said that Robinson had a ‘leftist ideology.’

Obama went on to call Kirk’s murder ‘horrific and a tragedy,’ while adding that Americans should be able to debate controversial ideas without fear.

‘Whether we’re Democrats, Republicans, independents, we have to recognize that on both sides, undoubtedly, there are people who are extremists and who say things that are contrary to what I believe are America’s core values.’

Obama then praised his former Republican political rivals for believing in unifying the country while leaving out Trump.

‘I think George W. Bush believed that,’ Obama added. ‘I believe that people who I ran against — I know John McCain believed it. I know Mitt Romney believed it.’

‘What I’m describing is not a Democratic value or Republican value. It is an American value.’

‘And I think at moments like this, when tensions are high, then part of the job of the president is to pull people together,’ Obama concluded.

The Trump administration has threatened to launch a variety of executive initiatives targeting ‘radical left’ groups, including labeling Antifa a domestic terrorist organization and revoking tax-exempt status for left-wing non-profit groups.