Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, speaks during a Unite and Win rally held by Turning Point Action at the Arizona Financial Theatre on Aug. 14, 2022, in Phoenix. Kirk and Pastor Rob McCoy of Newbury Park work in tandem to encourage pastors to become politically active.

WASHINGTON − Republican President Donald Trump called him "Great" and "Legendary." Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom recognized his success drawing young people to the Republican Party. The president's son, Donald Trump Jr., said he was "like a little brother to me."

Charlie Kirk wasn't a Trump aide. He didn't have a college degree. But the conservative phenom built what he called "the largest pro-American student organization in the country," Turning Point USA, over the last decade that helped propel Trump to the White House − and vet his aides after he arrived.

Kirk was shot and killed Sept. 10 continuing that quest, speaking to students at Utah Valley University in Orem as part of what he called The American Comeback Tour.

'He changed the direction of this nation'

The 31-year-old Kirk grew close to Trump and quickly became a prominent figure within the Republican Party. Considered an ally, Kirk was in constant communication with the president and became good friends with Trump Jr.

Donald Trump became a fixture and a keynote speaker at many Turning Point Action events, as Kirk gained a huge following with conservatives, especially among men.

In a reflection of Kirk's prominence in Trump's orbit, the president ordered flags to be flown at half-staff through Sept. 14.

Kirk helped Trump's presidential campaigns attract young voters. Kirk reportedly advised Trump's sons on the 2016 campaign's social media strategy and he addressed the 2016 Republican National Convention. In 2024, Turning Point helped with get-out-the-vote efforts.

Kirk shared Trump's penchant for scornful rhetoric. At a campaign rally with Trump last fall, Kirk said Democrats “stand for everything God hates.”

At a Turning Point political rally in December 2024, a month after winning the presidential election, Trump credited Kirk and Turning Point with his victory.

"I want to express my tremendous gratitude to Charlie Kirk. He's really an amazing guy, amazing guy and his whole staff for their relentless efforts to achieve this very historic victory. It's not my victory, it's your victory. It's a great honor."

Trump swiftly mourned Kirk's loss. "The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead," Trump said on social media. “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us."

In an a four-minute live address later posted to his Truth Social platform, Trump – sitting in the Oval Office – said he was “filled with grief and anger at the heinous assassination."

Trump's son offered his own heart-felt message.

“He was like a little brother to me - and to millions of people around the world - he was a true inspiration,” Trump Jr. said in post on X. “He was one of the most courageous, principled men I’ve ever known.”

Trump Jr. praised Kirk for reaching young people "in masses.”

“There is no question that Charlie’s work and his voice helped my father win the presidency,” Trump Jr. said. “He changed the direction of this nation.”

Kirk fundraising, podcast built political movement

Kirk's Turning Point USA grew rapidly as MAGA-style politics took root in America. The nonprofit posted grants and contributions worth roughly $2 million in 2014, according to Internal Revenue Service filings. By 2021, the latest year for which data is available, Turning Point boasted more than $79 million in contributions.

His popular podcast "The Charlie Kirk Show" rose in the rankings, too. Podtrac, which runs podcast analytics, ranked his show No. 19 in June by unique monthly audience among podcasts nationwide, up from No. 31 previously.

Political commentator Brilyn Hollyhand said he considered Kirk a mentor and that his impact would be felt for many years to come.

"Donald Trump wouldn’t be in the White House without Charlie Kirk," Hollyhand, chairman of the Republican National Committee’s Youth Advisory Council, told Fox News' talk show host Will Cain on Sept. 10.

Kirk’s podcast offered a platform for Trump's surrogates to share their ideas.

Kirk a vocal critic of liberalism

In February 2024, amid the hotly contested presidential election, immigration hardliner Stephen Miller joined Kirk to talk about how Trump would deport entire families, including U.S. citizen children.

“Any advanced, developed nation in the world that has a policy of not deporting adults with minors is a nation that will never be able to be sovereign,” Miller told him during the segment. “It will never be able to have a border.”

Like Miller, who now serves as Trump’s deputy chief of staff, Kirk gained fame in his youth as a vocal critic of liberalism in education. He wrote for the conservative news site Breitbart.

Unlike Miller – who graduated Duke University – Kirk took college courses but never finished a college degree. During Trump's first term, the president named Kirk to a special commission meant to promote “patriotic education” and to prevent “left-wing indoctrination” in schools.

'People need to understand your influence': Newsom to Kirk

Kirk became a charismatic figure among younger people interested in politics. When Newsom interviewed Kirk for his podcast in March, the governor said his 13-year-old son lobbied to stay home from school to watch.

“You are making a damn dent,” Newsom told Kirk. “I think people need to understand your success, your influence.”

Kirk said he began about a decade earlier by asking how he could persuade young voters to change by 10 points over 10 years by voting for Republicans rather than Democrats. Trump participated in that effort with appearances in TikTok videos and on podcasts.

“We saw this as an opportunity,” Kirk said.

Kirk calls Trump 'bodyguard of western civilization'

Speaking on the first night of the 2020 Republican National Convention, Kirk said at 26 he could see the angst of young people and challenges facing new parents. Kirk called the election the most important since the eve of the Civil War in 1860 and commended Trump for putting “his own life of luxury on the line” running for president.

“That moment he came down that famous escalator, he started a movement to reclaim our government from the rotten cartel of insiders that have been destroying our country,” Kirk said, in his typical hyperbole. “We may not have realized it at the time, but Trump is the bodyguard of western civilization.”

Contributing: Josh Meyer

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: How Charlie Kirk became a key ally, advisor, and activist for Donald Trump

Reporting by Bart Jansen, Terry Collins and Lauren Villagran, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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