Mr. Kirk, a close ally of President Trump, was speaking in front of a large crowd when a shot rang out, according to video from the scene.
Here’s what to know
Charlie Kirk, the head of Turning Point USA, the nation’s pre-eminent right-wing youth activist organization, was shot in the neck on Wednesday while speaking at a campus event at Utah Valley University.
Cellphone videos posted online showed people running from the event after a gunshot rang out. One video appeared to show Mr. Kirk’s head jerking back as blood poured from his neck. He had been delivering remarks while sitting under a tent with the slogan “The American Comeback” printed on it.
A university spokeswoman, Ellen Treanor, said that Mr. Kirk was struck about 20 minutes after he began speaking on campus. She said a suspect had fired at Mr. Kirk from the Losee Center, a building about 200 yards away, and been taken into custody.
The suspect was not a student, she said.
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Condition unknown: Ms. Treanor said Mr. Kirk’s security had taken him away after the shooting, and she did not have any information on his condition. Andrew Kolvet, a spokesman for Turning Point USA, confirmed that Mr. Kirk had been shot in the neck.
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Trump comments: President Trump posted on social media in support of Mr. Kirk. “We must all pray for Charlie Kirk, who has been shot,” he wrote on Truth Social. “A great guy from top to bottom. GOD BLESS HIM!”
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Close ally: Mr. Kirk, 31, has emerged in recent years one of the most influential young right-wing figures in the country, and established himself as a close ally of the president. Mr. Kirk co-founded Turning Point USA in 2012 and has since become a fixture on college campuses, where he hosts rallies like the one in Utah, that often draw large crowds.
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White House influence: Even though he is not part of the administration, Mr. Kirk’s influence in the White House is significant. Since the November election, he has helped vet prospective appointees, testing their loyalty to Mr. Trump.
EDIT:
The police have determined that a person who was taken into custody after the shooting was not actually the shooter, according to Scott Trotter, a university spokesman. The university had earlier said a suspect was in custody, and videos online showed an older man being detained by police officers.
EDIT 2:
Andrew Kolvet, Kirk’s spokesman, says Kirk is dead.
How noble of you
Poke fun at me all you want, but I want the world to be better, not just different. He’s a piece of shit and I’m glad he’s gone, but I’m not going to sit here and verbally masturbate over the thought of him suffering. I don’t celebrate when the garbage truck pulls up and drags away my trash. I just go about my day.
I want the world to be better too. At some point there’s a line where you have to be willing to kill (or die) for that though. If not, you can never have a better world because someone willing to use violence will roll over you. As much as I hate it, violence is the only thing that will stop people who believe violence is their best weapon. Debating them won’t do it.
And, to be clear, I’m not saying that people shouldn’t ever be killed. I dislike that it has to happen. I dislike that Charlie Kirk being shot in the throat is a net positive for the world, and I feel strongly enough about that that I don’t want to sit here and be excited about it. But it really couldn’t have happened to a more deserving person, and the world is better for it.
If we’re unwilling to fight, these right wing nutjobs will literally sacrifice human life to make line go up until there’s no one left. But I can recognize that it’s a good thing when someone like Charlie Kirk is no longer on the planet, and still feel bad about the fact that we need to take life to protect life.
You are literally stroking your ego rn but ok
I’m not sure why you want to make me out to be moral grandstanding right now, but whatever works for you, I guess.