{"id":43928,"date":"2025-09-15T00:23:48","date_gmt":"2025-09-15T07:23:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=43928"},"modified":"2025-09-15T00:25:04","modified_gmt":"2025-09-15T07:25:04","slug":"no-charlie-kirk-was-not-practicing-politics-the-right-way","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2025\/09\/15\/no-charlie-kirk-was-not-practicing-politics-the-right-way\/","title":{"rendered":"No, Charlie Kirk Was Not Practicing Politics the Right Way"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">His assassination deserves full condemnation; his full impact should not be sidestepped.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/author\/david-corn\/\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/author\/david-corn\/\">DAVID CORN<\/a>Washington, DC, Bureau Chief<a href=\"https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/author\/david-corn\/\">Bio<\/a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/davidcorndc\">Follow<\/a> (MotherJones.com)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"990\" height=\"557\" src=\"https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250911_charlie-kirk-wrong-way_2000.jpg?w=990\" alt=\"A man in a blue suit speaks into a microphone as a seated crowd of young people watches.\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250911_charlie-kirk-wrong-way_2000.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250911_charlie-kirk-wrong-way_2000.jpg?resize=208,117 208w, https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250911_charlie-kirk-wrong-way_2000.jpg?resize=321,180 321w, https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250911_charlie-kirk-wrong-way_2000.jpg?resize=630,354 630w, https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250911_charlie-kirk-wrong-way_2000.jpg?resize=990,556 990w, https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250911_charlie-kirk-wrong-way_2000.jpg?resize=1536,863 1536w, https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250911_charlie-kirk-wrong-way_2000.jpg?resize=50,28 50w, https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250911_charlie-kirk-wrong-way_2000.jpg?resize=1300,731 1300w, https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250911_charlie-kirk-wrong-way_2000.jpg?resize=642,361 642w, https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250911_charlie-kirk-wrong-way_2000.jpg?resize=768,432 768w\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Charlie Kirk debates with students at The Cambridge Union in May 2025<strong>Nordin Catic\/The Cambridge Union\/Getty<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Get your news from a source that\u2019s not owned and controlled by oligarchs.&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/newsletters\/?mj_oac=Article_Top_No_Oligarchs\">Sign up for the free&nbsp;<em>Mother Jones Daily<\/em>.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Tragedy is a powerful shaper<\/strong>&nbsp;of narratives. In the aftermath of the horrific assassination of MAGA champion Charlie Kirk, a husband and father of two, it was natural that his allies, including President Trump, lionized him as a patriot, free-speech advocate, and activist. And political opponents somberly denounced the terrible killing, as they should, with some hailing Kirk\u2019s devotion to public debate. There\u2019s a tendency in such a moment to look for the best in people or, at least, to not dwell on the negatives. That can be a good thing. Yet as Kirk is quickly canonized by Trump and his movement\u2014on Thursday Trump announced he would bestow upon Kirk a posthumous Presidential Medal of Freedom\u2014a full depiction of his impact on American politics is largely being sidestepped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DOhVyjJjYDy\/embed\/?cr=1&#038;v=14&#038;wp=540&#038;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.motherjones.com&#038;rp=%2Fpolitics%2F2025%2F09%2Fcharlie-kirk-legacy-ezra-klein-2020-election-trump-turning-point%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A1674.2999997138977%2C%22ls%22%3A624.1999998092651%2C%22le%22%3A881%7D<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In promoting a story on the murder of Kirk\u2014headlined \u201cCharlie Kirk killing deepens America\u2019s violent spiral\u201d\u2014<em>Axios<\/em>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2025\/09\/11\/charlie-kirk-killing-trump-political-violence\">described<\/a>&nbsp;him as a \u201cfierce champion of the right to free expression\u201d whose \u201cvoice was silenced by an assassin\u2019s bullet.\u201d&nbsp;<em>New York Times<\/em>&nbsp;opinion columnist Ezra Klein,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/09\/11\/opinion\/charlie-kirk-assassination-fear-politics.html\">wrote<\/a>, \u201cYou can dislike much of what Kirk believed and the following statement is still true: Kirk was practicing politics in exactly the right way. He was showing up to campuses and talking with anyone who would talk to him. He was one of the era\u2019s most effective practitioners of persuasion.\u201d Klein added that he \u201cenvied\u201d the political movement Kirk built and praised \u201chis moxie and fearlessness.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p>Kirk\u2019s advocacy of vigorous debate ought not be separated from what he said while jousting in the public square.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s the problem: Kirk built that movement with falsehoods. And his advocacy was laced with racist and bigoted statements. Recognizing this does not diminish the awfulness of this act of violence. Nor does it lessen our outrage or diminish our sympathy for his family, friends, and colleagues. Yet if this is an appropriate moment to assess Kirk and issue bold statements about his participation in America\u2019s political life, there ought to be room for a true discussion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Instagram video:  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DOhVyjJjYDy\/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link\">https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DOhVyjJjYDy\/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link<\/a><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/secure.motherjones.com\/fnx\/?action=SUBSCRIPTION&amp;b_country=United+States&amp;pub_code=DON&amp;term_pub=DON&amp;list_source=7HEGPA03&amp;term=XX.1.50.00.DON.D.0.7288\" target=\"_blank\"><\/a><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/secure.motherjones.com\/fnx\/?action=SUBSCRIPTION&amp;b_country=United+States&amp;pub_code=SDN&amp;term_pub=SDN&amp;list_source=7HEGPAM3&amp;term=XX.1.20.00.SDN.D.0.7310&amp;term_pub_override=SDN\" target=\"_blank\"><\/a><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/secure.motherjones.com\/fnx\/?action=SUBSCRIPTION&amp;b_country=United+States&amp;pub_code=MJM&amp;term_pub=MJM&amp;list_source=SEGYN1B\" target=\"_blank\"><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Kirk, a right-wing provocateur who founded and led Turning Point USA, an organization of young conservatives, was a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediaite.com\/media\/tv\/that-is-so-dishonest-geraldo-rivera-goes-off-on-charlie-kirk-for-insisting-election-is-still-in-question\/\">promoter<\/a>&nbsp;of Trump\u2019s destructive and baseless conspiracy theory that the 2020 election was stolen from him. Two days before the January 6 riot, Kirk&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/politics\/2021\/01\/sponsors-of-the-pre-attack-rally-have-taken-down-their-websites-dont-forget-who-they-were\/\">boasted<\/a>&nbsp;in a tweet that Students for Trump and Turning Point Action were \u201cSending 80+ buses full of patriots to DC to fight for this president.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After the attack, Kirk deleted the tweet, and he&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2021\/01\/13\/dark-money-gop-fund-funneled-millions-groups-that-pushed-voter-fraud-claims.html\">claimed<\/a>&nbsp;that the people his group transported to DC participated only in the rally that occurred before the assault on Congress\u2014where Trump whipped up the crowd and encouraged it to march on the Capitol. The&nbsp;<em>New York Times<\/em>&nbsp;subsequently reported that Turning Point Action sent only seven buses to the event. Turning Point also&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/politics\/2024\/01\/january-6-money-fancelli-wren\/\">paid<\/a>&nbsp;the $60,000&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2022\/06\/13\/politics\/kimberly-guilfoyle-paid-60000-speaking-fee-ellipse-january-6\/index.html\">speaking fee<\/a>&nbsp;to Kimberly Guilfoyle, a MAGA personality, for the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ZxHEqs7QG4I\">brief remarks<\/a>&nbsp;she made at the rally. \u201cWe will not allow the liberals and the Democrats to steal our dream or steal our elections,\u201d Guilfoyle told the crowd. (Kirk took the Fifth when he was deposed by the House January 6 committee.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Even prior to the election, Kirk helped set the stage for Trump\u2019s attempt to subvert the republic. In September 2020, the&nbsp;<em>Washington Post<\/em>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/turning-point-teens-disinformation-trump\/2020\/09\/15\/c84091ae-f20a-11ea-b796-2dd09962649c_story.html\">reported<\/a>&nbsp;that Turning Point Action was running a \u201csprawling yet secretive campaign\u201d to disseminate pro-Trump propaganda \u201cthat experts say evades the guardrails put in place by social media companies to limit online disinformation of the sort used by Russia during the 2016 campaign.\u201d The messages Turning Point generated spread the charge that Democrats were using mail balloting to steal the election and downplayed the threat from Covid. (Kirk\u2019s group called the story a \u201cgross mischaracterization.\u201d)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Whatever Kirk\u2019s group and supporters did on January 6, he was part of the MAGA crusade that largely broke US politics. Trump\u2019s refusal to accept his 2020 loss, his conniving to stay in power, and his encouragement of a lie that led to massive political violence greatly undermined American democracy and exacerbated the already deep divide in the nation. Kirk was a part of that. Yet Klein overlooks that in praising Kirk. And a&nbsp;<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/09\/10\/us\/charlie-kirk-republicans-trump-politics.html\">New York Times<\/a><\/em>&nbsp;piece on Kirk\u2019s political career made no mention of this, though it did report that he had been \u201caccused\u201d of \u201cantisemitism, homophobia and racism, having blamed Jewish communities for&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/07\/15\/us\/politics\/charlie-kirk-rnc-antisemitism.html\">fomenting hatred<\/a>&nbsp;against white people,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@thecharliekirkshow\/video\/7509546881148636459\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">criticized gay rights<\/a>&nbsp;on religious grounds and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/wl3UwsNZ544?si=Y9yn_XXjc4bmQek7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">questioned the qualifications<\/a>&nbsp;of Black airline pilots.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Kirk\u2019s advocacy of vigorous debate ought not be separated from what he said while jousting in the public square. He&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/politics\/2024\/02\/charlie-kirk-whiteness-turning-points-usa\/\">hosted white nationalists<\/a>&nbsp;on his podcast. He posted racist comments on his X account, including&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/sports\/columnist\/mike-freeman\/2024\/02\/04\/charlie-kirk-black-pilot-comment-tuskegee-airmen\/72412319007\/\">this remark<\/a>: \u201cIf I see a Black pilot, I\u2019m going to be like, \u2018Boy, I hope he\u2019s qualified.&#8217;\u201d He&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediamatters.org\/charlie-kirk\/frequent-fox-guest-charlie-kirk-praises-and-endorses-tucker-carlsons-replacement\">endorsed<\/a>&nbsp;the white \u201creplacement\u201d conspiracy theory. After the October 7 attack on Israel, he&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/link.motherjones.com\/public\/33022855\">compared<\/a>&nbsp;Black Lives Matter to Hamas. He&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.govinfo.gov\/content\/pkg\/GPO-J6-DOC-CTRL0000062433\/pdf\/GPO-J6-DOC-CTRL0000062433.pdf\">called for<\/a>&nbsp;preserving \u201cwhite demographics in America.\u201d He&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/davmicrot.bsky.social\/post\/3lykq3uvta224\">asserted<\/a>&nbsp;that Islam was not compatible with Western culture. He&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/davmicrot.bsky.social\/post\/3lykq3uvta224\">derided<\/a>&nbsp;women who supported Kamala Harris 2024 for wanting \u201ccareerism, consumerism, and loneliness.\u201d Or, as he also&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/davmicrot.bsky.social\/post\/3lykq3uvta224\">put it<\/a>, \u201cDemocratic women want to die alone without children.\u201d When Paul Pelosi, the husband of Rep. Nancy Pelosi, was brutally attacked in 2022, Kirk&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/politics\/politics-news\/charlie-kirk-bail-out-alleged-paul-pelosi-attacker-1234621493\/\">spread<\/a>&nbsp;a conspiracy theory about the crime and called for an \u201camazing patriot\u201d to bail out the assailant. He routinely deployed extreme rhetoric to demonize his political foes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Kirk did enjoy debating others. He visited campuses and held events in which he took on all comers, arguing over a variety of contentious issues. He was a showman, and his commitment to verbal duking was admirable. He appeared proud of the harsh opinions he robustly shared. Which means there\u2019s no reason now to be shy about them while pondering his legacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Moreover, as a movement strategist, he relied upon and advanced lies and bigotry\u2014including falsehoods that fueled violence and an assault on our national foundation. That was not a side gig for Kirk. It was a core component of his organizing. He did not practice politics the right way. He used deceit to develop his movement and to weaken the United States. His assassination is heinous and frightening and warrants widespread condemnation. It should prompt reflection on what is happening within the nation and what needs to be done to prevent further political violence. It should not protect him or others who engage in such politics of extremism from critical review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"The Terrible Politics of Charlie Kirk, Nick Fuentes, and Other Mainstream Republicans\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/IVvwdV4MSHs?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>His assassination deserves full condemnation; his full impact should not be sidestepped. Charlie Kirk debates with students at The Cambridge Union in May 2025Nordin Catic\/The Cambridge Union\/Getty Get your news from a source that\u2019s not owned and controlled by oligarchs.&nbsp;Sign up for the free&nbsp;Mother Jones Daily. Tragedy is a powerful&#8230; <a class=\"continue-reading-link\" href=\"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2025\/09\/15\/no-charlie-kirk-was-not-practicing-politics-the-right-way\/\"> Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr; <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43928"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43928"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43928\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43930,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43928\/revisions\/43930"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43928"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43928"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43928"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}