September 12, 2025 • 16 mins
Erika Kirk delivers a powerful and emotional national address following the assassination of her husband, Charlie Kirk. In her speech, she thanks law enforcement, first responders, and the Turning Point USA family, while vowing to carry forward Charlie’s mission of faith, family, and freedom. Erika promises that the movement Charlie built will not die, calling on young Americans to continue his legacy of courage, patriotism, and devotion to God.This is a moment of American history that will be remembered — a widow’s battle cry to keep her husband’s mission alive.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:11):
Good evening. My name is Erica Kirk.
Charlie Kirk is my husband. I first want to thank the local,
state and federal law enforcement who worked
tirelessly to capture my husband's assassin so that he
can be brought to justice. I want to thank the first
(00:32):
responders who struggled heroically.
Heroically. To save Charles's life and the
police who acted bravely to makesure that there were no other
victims on that terrible afternoon.
I want to thank the officers whohave protected our Turning Point
(00:54):
USA family these past two days. And I want to thank the Turning
Point USA board, the COO Justin Strife, and my husband's Chief
of staff, the amazing Mikey McCoy for all their work in
these terrible days to be the stability for our family and for
(01:17):
the wider Turning Point USA family as well.
My heart is with every one of myhusband's employees who lost a
friend and a mentor. I want to thank the staffers of
this his amazing Charlie Kirk show who helped him broadcast
(01:38):
from the studio this this chair.Every day he loved it.
He loved what he did. I want to thank the millions of
people who have shown their lovefor Charlie here in Phoenix,
across America and worldwide. I want to thank my husband's
(02:04):
dear friend, Vice President Vance, and his phenomenal wife
Usha for their love and support.You guys honored my husband so
well bringing him home. You both are.
Tremendous. I want to thank President Trump
(02:27):
and his incredible family for the same.
Mr. President, my husband loved you, and he knew that you loved
him too. He did.
Your friendship was amazing. You supported him so well, as
(02:54):
did he for you. 2 days ago my husband Charlie went to see the
face of his Savior and his God. Charlie always said that when he
was gone, he he wanted to be remembered for his courage and
for his faith. And one of the final
(03:18):
conversations that he had on this earth, my husband witnessed
for his Lord and Savior. Jesus Christ.
Now and for all eternity, he will stand at his Savior's side,
wearing the glorious crown of a martyr.
(03:43):
Charlie loved, loved. Life.
He loved his life, he loved America, he loved nature, which
helped him always bring him closer to God.
He loved the Chicago Cubs and mygoodness did he love the Oregon
(04:04):
Ducks. Want me to say go Ducks?
So I have to since they play on Saturday, so go ducks.
But most of all, Charlie loved his children and he loved me
with all of his heart. And I knew that every day.
(04:27):
I knew that he made sure I knew that every day.
Every day he would ask me, how can I serve you better?
How can I be a better husband? How can I be a better father
every day? Every day.
Such a good man. He still is a good man.
He was the perfect father. He was the perfect husband.
(04:51):
Charlie always believed that God's design for marriage in the
family was absolutely amazing. And it is, it is, and it was the
greatest joy of his life. And over and over he would tell
all these young people to come in and find their future spouse,
(05:11):
become wives and husbands and parents.
And the reason why is because hewanted you all to experience
what he had and still has. He wanted everyone to bring
heaven into this earth through love and joy that comes from
raising a family. It's beautiful.
(05:34):
Charlie always said that if he ever ran for office, I know a
lot of you asked if he ever was going to, but privately he told
me if he ever did run for officethat his top priority would be
to revive the American family. That.
Was his priority. One of Charlie's favorite Bible
(05:55):
verses was Ephesians 5 verse 25.Husbands, love your wives as
Christ loved the church and gavehimself up for her.
(06:16):
My husband laid down his life for me, for our nation, for our
children. He showed the ultimate and true
covenantal love. I will never ever have the words
to describe the loss that I feelin my heart.
(06:40):
I honestly have no idea what anyof this means.
I know that God does, but I don't.
But Charlie, baby, I know you dotoo.
I know you do. So does our Lord.
And our world is filled with evil, but our God.
(07:03):
You guys are God is so good so. Incredibly good.
And we know that for those who love God, all things work
together for good, for those whoare called according to His
purpose. Already I have seen the
(07:23):
worldwide outpouring of love formy husband.
I've heard the testimonies from people my husband inspired to
get married, to start families, to seek out a relationship with
God. It's the most important, most
important one of all. The evil doers responsible for
(07:48):
my husband's assassination have no idea what they have done.
They killed Charlie because he preached a message of
patriotism, faith, and of God's merciful love.
They should all know this. If you thought that my husband's
(08:13):
mission was powerful before, youhave no idea.
You have no idea what you just have unleashed across this
entire country and this world. You have no idea.
You have no idea the fire that you have ignited within this
(08:35):
wife. The cries of this widow will
echo around the world like a battle cry.
To everyone listening tonight across America, the movement my
husband built will not die. It won't.
(08:57):
I refuse to let that happen. It will not die.
All of us will refuse to let that happen.
No one will ever forget my husband's name, and I will make
sure of it. It will become stronger, bolder,
(09:19):
louder and greater than ever. My husband's mission will not
end, not even for a moment. And one of Charlie's greatest
talents was his ability, this phenomenal ability to choose
great people to follow him. He could always find the ones
(09:39):
who could handle any set back. And it's almost like he knew he
just, he could see it in you. Even when you couldn't see it in
yourself, you just knew. He knew you could handle it.
You thought you only had 5% leftand he knew you had 15.
He knew you were ready to go that extra mile even when you
didn't. He always challenged people
(10:00):
around him to work harder and tobe better.
He never gave up. And I love knowing that one of
his, one of his mottos was neversurrender.
So I want to tell you that, thatwe'll never surrender.
We never will ever, ever. Our campus tour this fall will
(10:25):
continue. There will be even more tours in
the years to come. America Fest here in Phoenix
this December will go on. It will be greater than ever.
The radio and podcast show that he was so proud of will go on.
(10:50):
And in a world filled with chaos, doubt and uncertainty, my
husband's voice will remain, andit will ring out louder and more
clearly than ever. And his wisdom will endure.
My favorite. My favorite too, but my
husband's favorite word in the English language was earn.
(11:15):
He would call all of you to be people of action who earn the
future America deserves. So to all of the young people
who felt inspired by my husband's faith and hard work,
all of you already know what Charlie would want you to do.
You know, you know if you're in high school or if you're in
(11:40):
college. Go find your local Turning Point
USA chapter. Join it.
Stay involved. He wants you to make a
difference and you can. You can.
The movement's not going anywhere and it will only grow
stronger when you join it. There isn't a chapter.
(12:04):
You can't find one, then start one.
There is no excuse. You can start one and as my
husband used to say in this room, every single day, if you
want to get involved, the best way you can do that is going to
tpusa.com. That's what he would say every
day from this chair, every single day.
I watched his show every day andhe would always say, if you want
(12:24):
to get involved, go to tpusa.com.
If you're a pastor, join our movement at TPUSA Faith.
And if you're a parent, I highlyrecommend that you come to
America Fest in December. Sign up right now for that
because we would love to see you.
I would love to see you, Charliewould He'll be there.
(12:47):
He'll be there in spirit. Bring your kids, bring your
family. But most important of all, if
you aren't a member of a church,I beg you to join 1A Bible
believing church. Our battle is not simply a
political one. Above all, it is spiritual.
(13:07):
It is. Spiritual.
The spiritual warfare is palpable.
Charlie loved his Savior with all of his heart and he wanted
everyone of you to know him too.He wanted everyone to know that
if they confess, if they confessthe Lord Jesus Christ who rose
(13:30):
from the dead, then they will besaved.
Hear me when I say this. Nobody is ever too young to know
the Gospel. Nobody.
Nobody is ever too young to get involved with saving this
beautiful country, this country my husband loved and still
(13:50):
loves. And nobody is ever too old
either. There's no age limit.
I know my husband is still here.He's watching over us.
I don't remember the last time Islept.
(14:13):
I couldn't sleep last night. And Charlie, baby, Charlie, I
promise I will never let your legacy die, baby.
I won't. I promise I'll make Turning
Point USA the biggest thing thatthis nation has ever seen.
(14:34):
I promise. Charlie, I love you.
I love you baby, rest in the arms of our Lord as He blankets
you with the words I know your heart always strives to hear.
Well done my good and faithful servant.
(14:59):
When I got home last night, Gigi, our daughter just ran into
our my arms and I talked to her and she said, Mommy, I missed
you. I said I miss you too baby.
She goes, Where's Daddy? What do you tell a three-year
(15:21):
old? She's 3.
I said baby daddy loves you so much.
Don't you worry. He's on a he's on a work trip
with Jesus so he can afford yourblueberry budget.
And my goodness, am I so humbledto witness Charlie, you
(15:45):
alongside Jesus right now, doingwhat you always want to do,
baby, Making heaven crowded, right?
That's what it's all about, making heaven crowded.
I can't wait to see you again one day.
(16:06):
Thank you all again who love my husband, who supported him, who
wrote him an e-mail every singleday during his radio show.
He read all of them, all of them.
God bless you all, and May God bless America.
Good evening. My name is Erica Kirk.
Charlie Kirk is my husband. I first want to thank the local,
state and federal law enforcement who worked
tirelessly to capture my husband's assassin so that he
can be brought to justice. I want to thank the first
(00:32):
responders who struggled heroically.
Heroically. To save Charles's life and the
police who acted bravely to makesure that there were no other
victims on that terrible afternoon.
I want to thank the officers whohave protected our Turning Point
(00:54):
USA family these past two days. And I want to thank the Turning
Point USA board, the COO Justin Strife, and my husband's Chief
of staff, the amazing Mikey McCoy for all their work in
these terrible days to be the stability for our family and for
(01:17):
the wider Turning Point USA family as well.
My heart is with every one of myhusband's employees who lost a
friend and a mentor. I want to thank the staffers of
this his amazing Charlie Kirk show who helped him broadcast
(01:38):
from the studio this this chair.Every day he loved it.
He loved what he did. I want to thank the millions of
people who have shown their lovefor Charlie here in Phoenix,
across America and worldwide. I want to thank my husband's
(02:04):
dear friend, Vice President Vance, and his phenomenal wife
Usha for their love and support.You guys honored my husband so
well bringing him home. You both are.
Tremendous. I want to thank President Trump
(02:27):
and his incredible family for the same.
Mr. President, my husband loved you, and he knew that you loved
him too. He did.
Your friendship was amazing. You supported him so well, as
(02:54):
did he for you. 2 days ago my husband Charlie went to see the
face of his Savior and his God. Charlie always said that when he
was gone, he he wanted to be remembered for his courage and
for his faith. And one of the final
(03:18):
conversations that he had on this earth, my husband witnessed
for his Lord and Savior. Jesus Christ.
Now and for all eternity, he will stand at his Savior's side,
wearing the glorious crown of a martyr.
(03:43):
Charlie loved, loved. Life.
He loved his life, he loved America, he loved nature, which
helped him always bring him closer to God.
He loved the Chicago Cubs and mygoodness did he love the Oregon
(04:04):
Ducks. Want me to say go Ducks?
So I have to since they play on Saturday, so go ducks.
But most of all, Charlie loved his children and he loved me
with all of his heart. And I knew that every day.
(04:27):
I knew that he made sure I knew that every day.
Every day he would ask me, how can I serve you better?
How can I be a better husband? How can I be a better father
every day? Every day.
Such a good man. He still is a good man.
He was the perfect father. He was the perfect husband.
(04:51):
Charlie always believed that God's design for marriage in the
family was absolutely amazing. And it is, it is, and it was the
greatest joy of his life. And over and over he would tell
all these young people to come in and find their future spouse,
(05:11):
become wives and husbands and parents.
And the reason why is because hewanted you all to experience
what he had and still has. He wanted everyone to bring
heaven into this earth through love and joy that comes from
raising a family. It's beautiful.
(05:34):
Charlie always said that if he ever ran for office, I know a
lot of you asked if he ever was going to, but privately he told
me if he ever did run for officethat his top priority would be
to revive the American family. That.
Was his priority. One of Charlie's favorite Bible
(05:55):
verses was Ephesians 5 verse 25.Husbands, love your wives as
Christ loved the church and gavehimself up for her.
(06:16):
My husband laid down his life for me, for our nation, for our
children. He showed the ultimate and true
covenantal love. I will never ever have the words
to describe the loss that I feelin my heart.
(06:40):
I honestly have no idea what anyof this means.
I know that God does, but I don't.
But Charlie, baby, I know you dotoo.
I know you do. So does our Lord.
And our world is filled with evil, but our God.
(07:03):
You guys are God is so good so. Incredibly good.
And we know that for those who love God, all things work
together for good, for those whoare called according to His
purpose. Already I have seen the
(07:23):
worldwide outpouring of love formy husband.
I've heard the testimonies from people my husband inspired to
get married, to start families, to seek out a relationship with
God. It's the most important, most
important one of all. The evil doers responsible for
(07:48):
my husband's assassination have no idea what they have done.
They killed Charlie because he preached a message of
patriotism, faith, and of God's merciful love.
They should all know this. If you thought that my husband's
(08:13):
mission was powerful before, youhave no idea.
You have no idea what you just have unleashed across this
entire country and this world. You have no idea.
You have no idea the fire that you have ignited within this
(08:35):
wife. The cries of this widow will
echo around the world like a battle cry.
To everyone listening tonight across America, the movement my
husband built will not die. It won't.
(08:57):
I refuse to let that happen. It will not die.
All of us will refuse to let that happen.
No one will ever forget my husband's name, and I will make
sure of it. It will become stronger, bolder,
(09:19):
louder and greater than ever. My husband's mission will not
end, not even for a moment. And one of Charlie's greatest
talents was his ability, this phenomenal ability to choose
great people to follow him. He could always find the ones
(09:39):
who could handle any set back. And it's almost like he knew he
just, he could see it in you. Even when you couldn't see it in
yourself, you just knew. He knew you could handle it.
You thought you only had 5% leftand he knew you had 15.
He knew you were ready to go that extra mile even when you
didn't. He always challenged people
(10:00):
around him to work harder and tobe better.
He never gave up. And I love knowing that one of
his, one of his mottos was neversurrender.
So I want to tell you that, thatwe'll never surrender.
We never will ever, ever. Our campus tour this fall will
(10:25):
continue. There will be even more tours in
the years to come. America Fest here in Phoenix
this December will go on. It will be greater than ever.
The radio and podcast show that he was so proud of will go on.
(10:50):
And in a world filled with chaos, doubt and uncertainty, my
husband's voice will remain, andit will ring out louder and more
clearly than ever. And his wisdom will endure.
My favorite. My favorite too, but my
husband's favorite word in the English language was earn.
(11:15):
He would call all of you to be people of action who earn the
future America deserves. So to all of the young people
who felt inspired by my husband's faith and hard work,
all of you already know what Charlie would want you to do.
You know, you know if you're in high school or if you're in
(11:40):
college. Go find your local Turning Point
USA chapter. Join it.
Stay involved. He wants you to make a
difference and you can. You can.
The movement's not going anywhere and it will only grow
stronger when you join it. There isn't a chapter.
(12:04):
You can't find one, then start one.
There is no excuse. You can start one and as my
husband used to say in this room, every single day, if you
want to get involved, the best way you can do that is going to
tpusa.com. That's what he would say every
day from this chair, every single day.
I watched his show every day andhe would always say, if you want
(12:24):
to get involved, go to tpusa.com.
If you're a pastor, join our movement at TPUSA Faith.
And if you're a parent, I highlyrecommend that you come to
America Fest in December. Sign up right now for that
because we would love to see you.
I would love to see you, Charliewould He'll be there.
(12:47):
He'll be there in spirit. Bring your kids, bring your
family. But most important of all, if
you aren't a member of a church,I beg you to join 1A Bible
believing church. Our battle is not simply a
political one. Above all, it is spiritual.
(13:07):
It is. Spiritual.
The spiritual warfare is palpable.
Charlie loved his Savior with all of his heart and he wanted
everyone of you to know him too.He wanted everyone to know that
if they confess, if they confessthe Lord Jesus Christ who rose
(13:30):
from the dead, then they will besaved.
Hear me when I say this. Nobody is ever too young to know
the Gospel. Nobody.
Nobody is ever too young to get involved with saving this
beautiful country, this country my husband loved and still
(13:50):
loves. And nobody is ever too old
either. There's no age limit.
I know my husband is still here.He's watching over us.
I don't remember the last time Islept.
(14:13):
I couldn't sleep last night. And Charlie, baby, Charlie, I
promise I will never let your legacy die, baby.
I won't. I promise I'll make Turning
Point USA the biggest thing thatthis nation has ever seen.
(14:34):
I promise. Charlie, I love you.
I love you baby, rest in the arms of our Lord as He blankets
you with the words I know your heart always strives to hear.
Well done my good and faithful servant.
(14:59):
When I got home last night, Gigi, our daughter just ran into
our my arms and I talked to her and she said, Mommy, I missed
you. I said I miss you too baby.
She goes, Where's Daddy? What do you tell a three-year
(15:21):
old? She's 3.
I said baby daddy loves you so much.
Don't you worry. He's on a he's on a work trip
with Jesus so he can afford yourblueberry budget.
And my goodness, am I so humbledto witness Charlie, you
(15:45):
alongside Jesus right now, doingwhat you always want to do,
baby, Making heaven crowded, right?
That's what it's all about, making heaven crowded.
I can't wait to see you again one day.
(16:06):
Thank you all again who love my husband, who supported him, who
wrote him an e-mail every singleday during his radio show.
He read all of them, all of them.
God bless you all, and May God bless America.
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