How a teenage activist became such a close Trump ally

Charlie Kirk was one of the first people that JD Vance was looking for before deciding to jump into politics.

“[Kirk] He introduced some people to run me [Senate] The campaign and also Donald Trump JR, ​​”Vice President, Kirk’in hours after the death of a strong tribute wrote.

“Don took a phone because Charlie asked him.”

Three years after the winning Senate Run, when Elder Donald thought about the election of his presidential jogging friend, Kirk defended the case for the public and private Vance.

Until then, Kirk was a fixture in Trump’s orbit, he was building donors, and discussing Trump’s strategies in Florida’s mar-a-lago property, and the turning point USA peaks organized by local Republicans.

He never ran to the task or did not take a official government position, but Kirk rose from being an activist unknown to the standard carrier of Donald Trump, one of the Chicago suburbs.

Kirk was the president Trump’s bridge for young Republicans, and Trump trusted him and his organization with his victory in 2024.

He was also a close personal friend of the Trump family, a key White House Advisor, a foil for the rivals of many young Republican and the rivals of the party.

Kirk, who was born in Chicago suburb in 1993, began early in conservative politics and firstly wrote an experiment for the 18 -year -old right -wing Breitbart News and accused his schools of spreading “propaganda” and “vaccination”.

Bill Montgomery, a retired businessman and tea party activist, has been a senior who has been under his wings for more than 50 years.

In 2012 – around the mid -point of Barack Obama’s presidency – Double founded Turning Point USA (TPUSA), a group that focuses on conservative activism in university campuses and spreads rapidly with Kirk’s social media.

The group entered the online media and spread a slippery conservatism style for young people. The 2016 Republican National Convention gained a 23 -year -old speech.

At that time, Kirk, who worked with more traditional republican candidates in the past, admitted to a cable magazine that “the world’s largest Donald Trump fan”.

However, from that moment on, Trump has been one of the greatest supporters of Trump, who continuously followed the Maga agenda and did not only participate in rare cases.

After Kirk’s death, Jared Kushner, the president’s record, wrote to X that he plays an important role in helping President Trump’s 2016 campaign and developing and encouraging maga movement “and his political organizations come with great ideas, working and always with extreme operators”.

Lawrence Muir, a former official under Trump’s first administration, said Kirk’s influence was too early in Trump’s first period and Tpusa was “the main recruitment tool for young people”.

However, perhaps more comprehensive influence, Mr. Muir, said that other conservatives give an understanding of how to reach social media and young people.

“What [Kirk] Indeed, did the did, to give a launch ramp for those who were not interested in being bureaucratic functionality, but they were building coalitions that went out and won. ”

Kirk’s political views were dragged to the right over time. He was against homosexual marriage and abortion, opposed Christian nationalism and criticized Islam very much, and famous for the right to have fiery weapons of gun deaths, he said. He also spread mistakes on issues such as a rival of diversity programs and Covid vaccines and voting fraud.

First of all, he was loyal to Trump.

At the end of the first period of Trump, the President forced the allegations of false election fraud, Kirk, USA, the US Capitol’dan January 6 rebellion of the rally for the rally in time to send 80 bus supporters to Washington’a boast.

Kirk was drawn in front of a congress committee investigating the rebellion and refused to say anything, instead of calling him the right not to blame his constitutional right.

However, until July 2024, BBC believed that it existed, but only “on the edges,” he said. Instead, he said the group was laser -oriented – such as the Trump campaign – such as the maximizing early voting methods they had matured for fraud and fraud.

Kirk, millions of tpusa dollars and thousands of volunteers, in the last year’s elections in the swing states poured their efforts to vote and strategy worked.

Analysts, the organization’s “ground game” was very important, says the analysts, the official Trump campaign’s struggles reaching rare voters or traditional social assistance, he says.

Although Democrat Kamala Harris generally won the youth vote, there was a much smaller difference than Joe Biden’s 2020 win.

In December just a few weeks after the election victory, Trump gave Kirk loan at the TPUSA’s annual American Conference.

“I would like to express my great gratitude to Charlie Kirk. A really incredible man, an amazing man, and all staff for their brutal efforts to achieve this very historical victory.” He said.

The meeting was produced in a victorious, bombed and slippery way with large video screens, a show of Tpusa’s deep pockets. According to the researcher journalism Outpublica, the group now spread to 3,500 high schools and colleges and brought more than 85 million dollars (£ 62 million) last year.

He also showed the ability of Kirk to bring together different wings of the Make America Again Again movement – Congress members, Roger Stone and Conspiracy Strategists, such as social media impressives.

The influence of Kirk has grown more controversially in Trump’s second period. Just two days before Trump took office, the couple played golf together in Mar-A-Lago.

Trump and his relations with the rest of the family shook him even on government duties – Kirk was reported to be included in the administration appointments earlier this year.

Vance wrote in his praise: “He didn’t only help us win in 2024, the staff helped us.”

Social media and podcast output continued rapidly with campus tours and other speaking commitments, while Trump continued the agenda of Trump.

After criticizing the justice department to release the files related to Jeffrey Epstein, the sex criminal, he received a phone with Trump. Shortly after, Kirk announced that he had “finished talking about Epstein.”

The news of killing, while scrolling on their phones, the young employees who saw the news of the scary breath of the White House struck hard.

“Oh my God,” they said, before running in a corridor to tell others. “Charlie Kirk was shot!”

Some staff were wiping their tears. President Trump received updates and telephone calls from Oval Office before giving a video address to explain his death to the public and then present a video address in the murder and fly to half person -wide flags.

“Charlie was a part of this family, and perhaps the highest profile maga person other than employees,” he said. “I think he shook everyone in the nucleus.”

Donald Trump Jr said Kirk, “It’s not just a friend, it’s a little brother for me.

Dr Matthew Dallek, a professor and modern conservative expert at the University of George Washington, said that the close personal ties between Kirk and the Trump family were “really important” for the wider impact of the Tpusa founder.

“Trump, maybe he gives loyalty awards on something else,” he said. “And if Don Jr says he’s a brother for him, this supporter shows how big he was. They certainly saw him as a critical ally and consultant.

“There was a relative spirit there, and they didn’t have to worry about his bolt from the movement. He was loyal.”