Trump officials praise Charlie Kirk's faith and his mark on the
conservative movement
[September 22, 2025]
By JONATHAN J. COOPER, EUGENE GARCIA, AAMER MADHANI and
MEG KINNARD
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — President Donald Trump praised Charlie Kirk as a
“great American hero” and “martyr” for freedom as he and other prominent
conservatives gathered Sunday evening to honor the slain conservative
political activist whose work they say they must now advance.
The memorial service for Kirk, whom Trump credits with playing a pivotal
role in his 2024 election victory, drew tens of thousands of mourners,
including Vice President JD Vance, other senior administration officials
and young conservatives shaped by the 31-year-old firebrand.
“He’s a martyr now for America’s freedom,” Trump said in his tribute. “I
know I speak for everyone here today when I say that none of us will
ever forget Charlie. And neither now will history.”
Speakers highlighted Kirk’s profound faith and his strong belief that
young conservatives need to get married, have children and pass on their
values to keep building their movement. They also repeatedly told
conservative activists, sometimes in forceful tones, that the best way
to honor Kirk was doubling down on his mission to move American politics
further to the right.
“For Charlie, we will remember that it is better to stand on our feet
defending the United States of America and defending the truth than it
is to die on our knees,” Vance said. “My friends, for Charlie, we must
remember that he is a hero to the United States of America. And he is a
martyr for the Christian faith.”
Kirk’s assassination at a Sept. 10 appearance on a Utah college campus
has set off a fierce debate about violence, decency and free speech in
an era of deep political division.
The shooting has stirred fear among some Americans that Trump is trying
to harness outrage over the killing as justification to suppress the
voices of his critics and political opponents.
Charlie Kirk's wife forgives suspect
Those close to Kirk prayed and the floors at the home of the NFL’s
Arizona Cardinals shook from the bass of Christian rock bands, as the
memorial started with the feel of a megachurch service before veering
into something more akin to a political rally.
Longtime worship leader Chris Tomlin opened the service, and was joined
later by other big names in contemporary Christian music, including
Brandon Lake and Phil Wickham. Near the end, as Trump took the stage,
Lee Greenwood sang a live rendition of the president’s campaign walk-on
song, “God Bless the U.S.A.”
People began lining up before dawn to secure a spot inside State Farm
Stadium west of Phoenix, where Kirk’s Turning Point organization is
based. Security was tight and speakers delivered their tributes from
behind bullet-proof glass.
The 63,400-seat stadium quickly filled with people dressed in red, white
and blue, as organizers suggested.
The mood in the stadium ebbed and flowed throughout a service that
stretched more than five hours. Mourners were patient and cordial, even
after waiting hours to enter and then an hour or more for food in
stadium concession lines.
Kirk's widow, Erika, in her own address said in the midst of her grief
she was finding comfort that her husband left this world without
regrets. She said she forgives the man who is charged with killing him.
“My husband, Charlie, he wanted to save young men, just like the one who
took his life,” said Erika Kirk, who is taking over as Turning Point's
leader. She added, “I forgive him.”
Trump, who closed out the service, remarked that Charlie Kirk “did not
hate his opponents” and “wanted the best for them," an attribute he
found hard to understand.
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President Donald Trump arrives to speak at a memorial for
conservative activist Charlie Kirk, Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, at State
Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
"That’s where I disagreed with Charlie. I hate my opponent, and I
don’t want the best for them," Trump said. "I’m sorry, I am sorry
Erika."
Comments about Kirk have become a Trump administration target
Trump has blamed the “radical left” for Kirk’s death and threatened
to go after liberal organizations and donors or others who he feels
are maligning or celebrating Kirk's death.
Dozens of people, from journalists to teachers to late show host
Jimmy Kimmel, have faced suspensions or lost their jobs as prominent
conservative activists and administration officials target comments
about Kirk that they deem offensive or celebratory. The retaliation
has in turn ignited a debate over the First Amendment.
Some speakers at the memorial said Kirk was battling evil and
referred to a vague “they” as the enemy. Others were blunt.
“You have no idea the dragon you have awakened, you have no idea how
determined we will be to save this civilization, to save the West,
to save this republic," said White House deputy chief of staff
Stephen Miller.
Kirk was a provocateur who at times made statements that some called
racist, misogynistic, anti-immigrant and transphobic. That has drawn
backlash from conservatives who view the criticism as cherry-picking
a few select moments to insult the legacy of someone they see as an
inspirational conservative leader.
A 22-year-old Utah man, Tyler Robinson, has been charged with
killing Kirk and faces the death penalty if convicted of the most
serious charges. Authorities have not revealed a clear motive in the
shooting, but prosecutors say Robinson wrote in a text to his
partner following the shooting that he “had enough” of Kirk's
hatred.
Kirk's legacy of conservative political influence
Turning Point, the group Kirk founded to mobilize young Christian
conservatives, became a multimillion-dollar operation under his
leadership with enormous reach.
The crowd was a testament to the influence he accumulated in
conservative America with his ability to mobilize young people.
And the service brought together a veritable who's who of the
Republican Party, with numerous current and former lawmakers in the
crowd. Elon Musk, the tech billionaire and former top adviser to
Trump, was spotted sitting with Trump for part of the service.
Kirk was a MAGA celebrity with a loyal following that turned out to
support or argue with him as he traveled the country for the events
like the one at Utah Valley University, where he was shot.
Speaker after speaker, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, expressed awe at Kirk's ability to
go into what many conservatives saw as the lion's den to make the
conservative case: college campuses.
“Why don’t you start somewhere easier,” Rubio recalled thinking when
he first heard about Kirk years ago. “Like, for example, communist
Cuba?"
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Madhani reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Tiffany
Stanley in Washington, Silvia Stellacci in Rome; Terry Tang, and
Jesse Bedayn contributed to this report.
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