Charlie Kirk memorial: 5 takeaways

Tens of thousands of people gathered in Arizona on Sunday for a memorial service honoring conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was killed during a campus event in Utah earlier this month.

The event was held at State Farm Stadium in Glendale and drew dozens of Trump administration officials, GOP lawmakers and prominent conservatives, along with thousands of supporters. Speakers reflected on Kirk’s life and legacy and the path forward at a point of heightened tensions.

Here are five takeaways.

Trump leans into politics

While most of the speakers on Sunday were focused on Kirk’s legacy, his faith and the movement he helped build, President Trump did not shy away from the political divisions that have in some ways been exacerbated since Kirk’s death.

“He did not hate his opponents, he wanted the best for them,” Trump said. “That’s where I disagreed with Charlie. I hate my opponents, and I don’t want the best for them. I’m sorry.”

Trump noted at one point that Kirk referred to his political rivals as “the left,” adding that he preferred the term “radical left” or “radical left lunatics.”

The president’s remarks veered frequently into political territory that resembled a campaign speech. Trump spoke about plans for an announcement on Monday about autism. He claimed Democrats “cheated like dogs” in the 2020 election, which Trump lost. He mocked former President Joe Biden. And he touted the tariffs he has imposed since taking office.

Kirk’s death has sparked a renewed discussion about rising political violence and calls from some lawmakers to lower the temperature. But those efforts have already sputtered as the Trump administration threatens to crack down on speech it views as hateful and Democrats argue Kirk’s death should not obscure the more inflammatory things he said. 

Vice President JD Vance acknowledged the heightened tensions during his remarks.

“In the wake of his death, we have seen some of the very worst parts of humanity,” Vance said. “We have watched people slander him. We have watched people justify his murder and celebrate his death. I know this has made you angry, just as it has made you angry. But it is easy in these moments to see only the worst in our fellow man.”

Erika Kirk steps into national spotlight

Erika Kirk has become a household name in the days since her husband was killed at Utah Valley University, and her remarks on Sunday were her most significant appearance yet.

Erika Kirk dabbed tears from her eyes throughout her remarks and broke down at one point when she said she forgave the suspect who shot and killed Charlie Kirk.

She spoke at length about her husband’s mission and about how religion was central to their family. 

“I love you Charlie, baby. And I will make you proud,” Erika Kirk said at the end of her roughly 25-minute speech, earning rapturous applause.

And she vowed to carry on her husband’s work, which she said was focused on persuading young men like the one who killed Charlie Kirk.

The Turning Point USA board last week voted to make Erika Kirk the next CEO of the organization her husband founded.

“The world needs Turning Point USA. It needs a group that will point young people away from the path of misery and sin,” Kirk said, vowing campus events would continue. “It needs something that will lead people away from hell in this world and in the next. It needs young people pointed in the direction of truth and beauty.

“And so I promise you today, every part of our work will become greater,” Erika Kirk said.

Trump administration well represented

The White House flew two planes worth of staff, lawmakers and administration officials to Kirk’s memorial, reflecting how closely intertwined the Turning Point USA founder was with the Trump administration.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy all spoke. White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, who rarely makes public remarks, gave a brief but emotional address.

“Our whole administration is here,” Vice President Vance said. “Not only because we love Charlie as a friend, even though we did, but because we know we wouldn’t be here without him.”

White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller warned political enemies that they had awakened a movement they could not comprehend, and that Kirk would be “immortalized.”

“You thought you could kill Charlie Kirk? You have made him immortal,” Miller added. “You have immortalized Charlie Kirk and now millions will carry on his legacy.”

Sergio Gor, a longtime Trump aide, said Kirk “was all Trump” and “embodied MAGA.”

“Charlie embodied the spirit of MAGA. Always fighting for America, never backing down,” said Gor, the former director of presidential personnel who has since been tapped as ambassador to India.

And Gabbard said Kirk’s legacy was a reflection of the importance of free speech and free debate, remarks that stood out at a time when the administration is facing backlash from the left and the right for attempting to punish speech it doesn’t like in the wake of Kirk’s death.

“Free speech is a foundation of our democratic republic. We must protect it all costs, because without it, we’ll be lost,” Gabbard said. “Charlie knew this. He lived it.”

Speakers emphasize Kirk’s faith, spiritual fight

Kirk’s faith was central to his life, and speaker after speaker on Sunday invoked that and framed what comes next as a spiritual fight.

President Trump said Kirk was a “martyr.” Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson said Kirk was “bringing the gospel to the country.” Turning Point USA spokesman Andrew Kolvet called Kirk a “prophet.”

Jack Posobiec, a right-wing commentator, called on attendees to “put on the full armor of God and face the evil in high places and the spiritual warfare before us.”

And conservative commentator Benny Johnson made a Biblical reference to suggest the Trump administration had been given power by God to “wield the sword for the terror of evil men.”

“We want to thank the administration for being here and carrying out that godly mission of wielding the sword against evil,” Johnson added.

Memorial unites factions of conservative movement

Sunday’s event featured a number of guests who were unlikely to be in the same room at another gathering, aside perhaps from the Republican National Convention.

Carlson, the former Fox News host who has at times been critical of the Trump administration’s foreign policy, was among those who spoke about his relationship with Kirk.

Posobiec, a fringe figure who was at the center of the Pizzagate conspiracy, was also given a speaking slot.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk was in attendance and was spotted at one point sitting with Trump in a private suite during the memorial. Musk had raised the possibility of starting a new political party in the wake of his bitter fallout with the Trump White House.

Dana White House, the CEO of the United Fighting Championship (UFC), was also in attendance and spotted alongside Trump.

And Gabbard, the director of national intelligence and a former Democrat, also had a speaking slot.

“This is like an old time revival, isn’t it?” Trump said.