Here's What Charlie Kirk Said About Gun Control Over The Years

Yesterday, Charlie Kirk, the 31-year-old conservative media figure and founder of Talking Points USA, was shot dead while speaking at a Utah Valley University event.

Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images

Throughout his career, the Donald Trump ally was a critic of gun control. Here are some of the things Kirk said about guns over the years:

1.In 2018, Kirk spoke at the NRA-ILA Leadership Forum. He said, “There is no First Amendment without a Second Amendment, make no mistake. You can’t pick and choose your freedoms…They put in the Second Amendment to protect us against government tyranny.”

Person speaking at a podium at the 2018 NRA-ILA Leadership Forum, with NRA branding in the background — NRA

2.In 2023, Kirk said at a TPUSA Faith event, “We must also be real. We must be honest with the population. Having an armed citizenry comes with a price, and that is part of liberty…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.”

A person in a suit speaks at a seated event with an audience — TPUSA Faith

3.At the same event, he suggested arming more Americans as a way to combat gun violence, asking, “If our money and our sporting events and our airplanes have armed guards, why don’t our children?”

Person speaking into a microphone while seated on stage, wearing a suit and tie; audience visible in foreground — TPUSA Faith

4.In 2013, he likened “most gun control arguments” to “trolling.”

Tweet by Charlie Kirk from 2013 about dismissing certain gun control arguments as trolling — @charliekirk11 / Via x.com

5.In 2022, he said that gun control, vaccines, and face masks were about “taking freedoms away from others” and urged his followers, “Don’t fall for it.”

Tweet by user criticizing gun control by comparing it to vaccines and masks, implying it removes freedoms — @charliekirk11 / Via x.com

6.In response to the 2018 Santa Fe High School shooting, where the shooter purchased handgun ammunition online without age verification, Kirk questioned whether “more laws” would fix school shootings:

Tweet by Charlie Kirk questioning the effectiveness of laws regulating gun ownership and usage — @charliekirk11 / Via x.com

7.He repeatedly argued that increased gun control would mean that only the “bad guys” had guns:

Tweet by Charlie Kirk claiming Chicago's strict gun laws result in over 500 murders annually, arguing gun control benefits criminals over good citizens — @charliekirk11 / Via x.com

8.In 2018, Kirk said that “guns save lives” and asked, “Why don’t we protect our schools with armed guards?”

Tweet by Charlie Kirk claims armed police stopped a mass shooting at a California racetrack, questions why schools aren't similarly protected — @charliekirk11 / Via x.com

9.In 2019, Kirk denied that gun control would stop mass shootings and added, “Democrats don’t want to fix gun violence. They want to take away your Second Amendment.”

Summary of tweet: The post argues that gun control wouldn't have stopped shootings in California, Parkland, and San Diego, and criticizes Democrats on gun violence — @charliekirk11 / Via x.com

10.Shortly after the 2018 Parkland high school shooting, the deadliest mass shooting at a high school, Kirk went on Fox News to argue against more gun control laws. He argued, “We have a culture problem in this country that has stemmed from failing public schools and bad government programs.”

Three people discuss FBI handling of a tip about Nikolas Cruz on Fox News — Fox News

11.In a 2020 Turning Points USA video, Kirk said, “We have a fatherlessness problem. We have an over-medicating youth problem. We have an isolation problem. We have a depression problem. We have a nutrition problem. Guns are not part of that entire equation.”

Person speaking on stage about gun control myths, emphasizing nutrition issues not related to guns. American flag in the background

12.In that video, he continued, “I own plenty of firearms. They’re perfectly fine in their safe, they’re not shooting themselves. It takes a broken individual that comes from a broken family or a broken culture. We as Conservatives, every day, should say, ‘Rebuild the American family. Put fathers back in their homes.'”

A man speaks at a podium beside a screen and U.S. flag. Text reads: "Gun control myths destroyed. Should say 'Rebuild the American family...'"

13.Finally, Kirk’s last words are reported to have been about gun control. An audience member asked Kirk if he knew how many transgender mass shooters there had been over the past decade, to which Kirk replied, “Too many.” The audience member pointed out that there had been five, before asking Kirk is he knew how many mass shooters there had been overall during that time span. “Counting or not counting gang violence?” Kirk asked before being shot.