BURSTRadio host Charlamagne tha God was puzzled why some people are celebrating UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s death.
He questioned what Luigi Mangione’s killing of Thompson in Manhattan earlier this month accomplished, arguing that insurance companies still deny claims.
“I don’t understand why people are celebrating him being killed because at the end of the day, like I said yesterday, he’s dead. His kids don’t got no father. That 26-year-old Luigi or whatever his name is, he gonna be in jail for the rest of his life,” Charlamagne tha God said during Friday’s edition of “The Breakfast Club.”
“And the healthcare system is still the same today. The health companies still denying claims and everything today. So what did that accomplish, and why are you happy about him being gunned down like that? It’s just weird where we are as a people,” the host added.
Following Mangione’s killing of the executive on Dec. 4, a country-wide debate about the current state of the health care system was reignited. Some people, particularly on social media, gloated about Thompson’s killing, presenting it as a way to show their animosity to the industry.
In turn, the sympathy for Mangione, who was arrested Monday in Pennsylvania after a tip from McDonald’s employee, has sparked backlash.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) weighed in on the debate himself, condemning the “deeply disturbing” reaction to Thomson’s killing this week.
“Some attention in this case, especially online, has been deeply disturbing, as some have looked to celebrate instead of condemning this killer,” Shapiro said earlier this week. “In some dark corners, this killer is being hailed as a hero. Hear me on this: He is no hero.”
Since Shapiro’s remarks, prosecutors have filed murder charges against Mangione, an Ivy League graduate, after discovering a gun and writings seemingly connecting him to the New York City shooting.