Quick Smart Is Trump using Charlie Kirk’s death to start a ‘spiritual war’ against the Left?
Sep 22, 2025
Patti Manning, an investigative journalist and commentator, dives into the political implications surrounding Charlie Kirk's recent memorial in Arizona, attended by Donald Trump. She discusses Kirk's framing as a martyr and the troubling rhetoric of a spiritual war against the Left. Patti analyzes Kirk's controversial influence and the weaponization of his death by political figures to suppress opposition. They also explore how this trend in the U.S. may be influencing Christian nationalism globally, particularly in Australia, raising alarms over rising far-right sentiments.
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Memorial Framed As Spiritual War
- Speakers at Kirk's memorial framed his death as part of a broader spiritual and militant struggle.
- Patti Manning says this elevated the event beyond politics into a declared spiritual war.
Kirk's Campus Conversion Strategy
- Charlie Kirk aggressively targeted college students to convert them to conservative politics and evangelical Christianity.
- Turning Point had 600,000 members, 1,800 chapters and about $80 million in annual revenue at his death.
High Reach, Low Veracity
- Charlie Kirk was a prolific media figure whose claims were repeatedly flagged as false by fact-checkers.
- Patti Manning notes PolitiFact found most of his claims were mostly or completely false, often crossing into explicit racism.