Charlie Kirk reveled in 'thoughtcrime.' What were his views on the issues?

The slain 31-year-old activist regularly attracted attention, with critics accusing him of racism and other bigotry. Supporters said Charlie Kirk was a fearless truth teller.Show Caption

Charlie Kirk was one of the right's preeminent provocateurs, often delving into contentious territory.He staked out positions on race, gender, guns and marriage that inspired and angered many. He even co-hosted a panel discussion show titled "Thoughtcrime" to discuss "things you are not allowed to talk about."A conservative leader and MAGA celebrity, Kirk traveled the country debating other young people and building a juggernaut youth group, Turning Point USA. His clout extended to the White House as a close ally of President Donald Trump who was deeply involved in guiding his administration.Hugely influential and often controversial, the 31-year-old Kirk was killed last week when a gunman shot him at an event in Utah. The slain activist produced hours of commentary for his online show and spent years traveling the country for events where he talked about guns, diversity efforts, abortion, LGBTQ issues and more.Kirk’s comments regularly attracted notice, with critics accusing him of promoting racism, homophobia, antisemitism and other forms of bigotry. Supporters said he was a fearless visionary. Here are some of his views.Anti-immigrant advocacyDeporting immigrants who don’t have legal status was a major focus for Kirk.Vice President JD Vance, who hosted Kirk’s show this week in memoriam, said Kirk would call him and question why more people weren’t being deported faster under the Trump administration."Charlie was a hardliner on immigration," Vance said, adding: "I remember having conversations with Charlie where he would say: 'Why aren't the deportations higher? Why aren't you doing more?"Kirk also espoused the tenets of the “Great Replacement” conspiracy theory, which fosters the belief that non-white immigrants will replace white citizens.“The Democrat Party built their entire coalition on the great replacement reality,” Kirk said June 11 on his show. “We are going to have millions of people come into the country and try to replace the native-born population to change the politic. If you can’t win elections because the people don’t support you, well then change the people. Replace them.”Kirk claimed Islam is “not compatible with Western civilization.” He also was accused of antisemitism, including by some on the right, for comments about Jewish people. His allies pushed back, saying he was a strong supporter of Israel.After the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel, Kirk said the biggest defenders of the country are "us - conservative, evangelical christians."“Jewish donors, they have a lot of explaining to do, a lot of decoupling to do,” Kirk added. “Because Jewish donors have been the No. 1 funding mechanism of radical, open-border neoliberal quasi-Marxist policies, cultural institutions and nonprofits. This is a beast created by secular Jews. And now it’s coming for Jews, and they’re like, ‘What on Earth happened?’ And it’s not just the colleges. It’s the nonprofits, it’s the movies, it’s Hollywood, it’s all of it.”Embodied GOP’s shift away from foreign military interventionOne of the biggest divides in the GOP in recent years has been between Republicans who are more hawkish about using military force, and those who are more isolationist and question military intervention.Kirk was in the later camp, according to Tucker Carlson, the conservative political commentator and former Fox News host.“The divide, particularly on foreign policy questions, is very real in the Republican Party,” Carlson said during a podcast appearance last week with Vance while the vice president was guest hosting Kirk's show. “Neocons versus the realists, or however you want to describe it. He was on the realists side for sure.”Vance, in his discussion with Carlson, said the slain activist called him over the summer when the administration was contemplating bombing Iran’s nuclear facilities and said “I’m really worried this is going to become another regime change war in the Middle East that we get trapped in.”Kirk eventually backed Trump’s decision to strike Iran “while simultaneously saying no more, this can’t become a bigger thing," the vice president said.Against abortion, even if daughter was rapedKirk’s strong religious views factored heavily into his political advocacy."His Christianity was sincere and his commitment to Jesus was totally sincere," Carlson said on the memorial episode of Kirk's show with Vance, adding "It informed every single part of his life."Kirk made religious arguments against LGBTQ individuals, and was staunchly anti-abortion.During an episode of the web show "Surrounded," Kirk was asked if he had a 10-year-old daughter who was raped and became pregnant if he’d want her to deliver the baby.“The answer is yes, the baby would be delivered,” Kirk said.Opposed Civil Rights Act, diversity effortsKirk often discussed racial issues. He was an ardent opponent of affirmative action and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.Kirk attracted attention last year for stating on his show that “If I see a Black pilot, I’m going to be like, boy, I hope he’s qualified.”In a clip posted on Kirk’s YouTube channel this year, a Black individual attending a Kirk event brought up the comment and told him “don’t you think it was an irresponsible statement?”“No,” Kirk responded while wearing a shirt reading “ANTI-DEI PRO-MERIT.” He then launched into an explanation, noting he was responding to an announcement by United Airlines, which set a goal for a certain percentage of pilots in training to be minorities and women.“Anytime we reach racial quotas we relax the standards… therefore when it comes to pilots or surgeons, if I see somebody who is Black… I’m going to hope that that person is qualified,” Kirk said, adding: “That’s what DEI does, it makes you ask questions you otherwise wouldn’t ask.”Kirk routinely criticized the 1964 Civil Rights Act that banned racial and other forms of discrimination in public places, saying on his show last year that it “created a beast, and that beast has now turned into an anti-white weapon.”Gun deaths 'worth it' to protect gun rightsKirk was a staunch gun rights advocate who happened to be answering questions about gun violence when he was killed.In 2023, Kirk told an audience at a TPUSA Faith event that gun deaths are “worth it” to protect the right to bear arms.“You will never live in a society when you have an armed citizenry and you won’t have a single gun death,” Kirk said. “That is nonsense. It’s drivel. But I am — I think it’s worth it. I think it’s worth to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment to protect our other God-given rights. That is a prudent deal.”Kirk added that having more “fathers in the home” and more security guards at schools would reduce gun deaths.Rallied Anti-LGBTQ SentimentKirk opposed transgender rights and his organization sponsored rallies against transgender medical care. In April 2024, he likened doctors who perform gender-affirming care to Nazis committing atrocities."One issue I think that is so against our senses, so against the natural law and dare I say a throbbing middle finger to God, is the transgender thing happening in America right now,” he said during a speech posted in 2023 by Right Wing Watch.In the same speech, Kirk cited a Bible verse saying that a woman who puts on men’s clothes or a man who puts on a woman’s garment is an “abomination.”During his show in April 2022, he argued that gay couples “are not happy just having marriage. Instead, they now want to corrupt your children.”Pushed DOGE, Big Beautiful BillKirk was a big cheerleader for some of the signature initiatives of Trump’s second term, including the Department of Government Efficiency and the big legislative package the president signed into law in July that cut taxes and programs such as Medicaid.While critics said DOGE’s aggressive overhauling of federal agencies was inviting a constitutional crisis by usurping the authority of Congress, Kirk said it was restoring the rightful power of the executive branch.“This, everybody, is the most exciting, high-stakes constitutional fight in a century,” Kirk said on his show in February. “President Trump is saving the idea of the will of the people, saving we the people.”In June, as Congress was working to pass Trump’s signature legislation – dubbed the One Big Beautiful Bill – Kirk posted on social media what he described as “50 MAJOR wins” from the legislation.“Promises made, promises kept,” Kirk concluded.Contributing: Reuters