Charlie Kirk, CEO and co-founder of the Conservative Youth Turning Point USA, was fatally turned during an event in a college in Utah.
Kirk was a high -level podcaster, a warrior of culture and an ally of President Donald Trump. He led an effort to redo the exit of the GOP during the 2024 elections on the basis of the theory, thousands of supporters of Trump rarely vote but could be convinced to vote.
His murder Wednesday is the latest example of political violence in the United States covering a range of political ideologies and affecting the two main political parties.
Here is what you need to know about the set of Kirk:
A shot drawn from a roof
Kirk was expressed during a debate organized by Turning Point USA at the University of Utah Valley when the authorities said that the shooter had fired on a distant roof.
Videos have published on Kirk social media speaking in a portable microphone while sitting in a white tent. A single shot rings and Kirk tries his hand with his right hand while blood gushes from the left side of his neck.
Utah Valley is the largest public university in the state with an inscription of 47,000. It is around 40 miles (64 kilometers) south of the capital of the state of Salt Lake City.
Kirk killer hunt
The shooter has targeted a person, said Beau Mason, the commissioner of the Utah Ministry of Public Security.
Police worked Thursday to identify the shooter that the authorities say “seem to be college” and “mixed” with the university population. After pulling the blow, the shooter jumped from the roof and moved away from chaos. A powerful lock bolt rifle has been recovered from the area, according to the FBI.
The federal, state and local authorities worked what they called “several active crime scenes”. Little information on the identity, the motive, the location or the evidence of the shooter was provided.
The authorities were reviewing the granular security videos of a mysterious person in dark clothes.
Governor Spencer Cox described the murder of “political assassination”.
A person of interest was in detention on Wednesday evening, said Cox, although no accusation was immediately announced. Officials had no information indicating that a second person was involved, said the Republican Governor.
Police were seen by looking at a photo on their phones and showing it to people near the shooting scene.
Two people were detained on Wednesday, but none were determined to be linked to the shooting and the two were released, public security officials said.
The university said the campus had been immediately evacuated and remained closed. The lessons were canceled until further notice. The people still on the campus were invited to stay in place until the police can escort them safely.
Trump’s assistant’s assistant’s rise to the major conservative influencer
Kirk was 18 years old when he co -founded Turning Point in the suburbs of Chicago in 2012 with William Montgomery, a TEA Party activist. They aimed to take their ideas for low taxes and government limited to university campuses.
Turning Point supported Trump with enthusiasm after winning the appointment of the GOP to the presidency in 2016. Kirk was a personal assistant to the eldest son of the then then, Donald Trump Jr., during the general electoral campaign.
The Trump connection has helped feed the rise in turn of turn. Soon, Kirk was a regular presence on cable television, where he looked at cultural wars and praised the president.
Contributions to the group have doubled and tripled – possibly climbing $ 79.2 million in 2022, according to an analysis of tax declarations accessible to the public. The group declares that it is now present on nearly 4,000 high school and college campuses, operating as a brand of conservative lifestyle which promotes hundreds of online influencers.
Kirk was known for his provocative statements on the breed he used to court the voters of the Z generation.
“I’m sorry. If I see a black pilot, I’m going to say to myself:” Boy, I hope he is qualified “,” said Kirk in an episode of Podcast 2024 with his right -wing activist colleague Jack Posobiet.
Kirk firmly opposed the promulgation of Juneteenth as federal holidays. He said that the decision to raise the date was motivated by the “anti-American” feeling which favored “a neo-securityist point of view” which he affirmed seeking to supplant the day of independence.
Politicians unite to condemn the attack
Republicans and Democrats quickly condemned the attack.
Trump ordered that flags were lowered into half-people and have published a presidential proclamation. The president, who suffered a minor ear injury when he was shot in a campaign event last year, said he and Kirk had a close relationship.
He described Kirk on Truth Social as a “big guy from top to bottom.” May God bless him! “
California Governor of California Gavin Newsom, who welcomed Kirk last March on his podcast, posted on X: “Charlie Kirk’s attack is disgusting, vile and reprehensible.”
An earlier version of this story has misized the family name of an activist. His name is Jack Posobiec, not posobesty.
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