Trump Attends Memorial, Describes Kirk as 'A Giant of an Era'

(United States, 22nd) U.S. President Trump attended the memorial service of ally Kirk, describing Kirk as 'a giant of an era' and 'a martyr for American freedom', and denounced the suspect as 'a radical cold-blooded monster'.
CNN reported that on Sunday (Sept 21), Trump delivered a speech at the memorial service for Kirk (Charlie Kirk) in Arizona, saying Kirk 'was killed for speaking the truth from his heart. He was brutally murdered because he spoke out for freedom and justice, for God, for country, for reason, and for common sense.'
He also said Kirk's shooting was an attack on all conservative ideals. 'The gun was pointed at him, but the bullet was aimed at all of us.'
Trump emphasized that the suspect failed to silence Kirk's movement. 'The suspect's attempt failed because Charlie Kirk's voice was not suppressed. Instead, it is now stronger, broader, and more influential than ever.'
He said: 'Kirk's life experience tells us never to underestimate what a person with a kind heart, a just cause, an optimistic spirit, and the will to fight, fight, fight can achieve. We are saving our country, and he played an important role in that.'
Right-wing activist Kirk was a close ally of Trump. On the 10th of this month, he was shot and killed by a sniper while giving a speech at Utah Valley University, at just 31 years old. Eleven days after Kirk's passing, the conservative youth advocacy organization he founded, Turning Point USA, held a memorial service. Trump, Vice President Vance, and multiple cabinet members attended, along with tens of thousands of people dressed in red, white, and blue.

Kirk's wife, Erika (Erika Kirk), at the memorial, recounted the shock and heartbreak she felt at her husband's death. 'I went to a hospital in Utah to do something unimaginable: to look at my husband's body. I saw the wound that ended his life. I felt shock, fear, and a kind of heartbreak I had never experienced before.'
However, she chose to forgive the suspect who shot Kirk: 'The answer to hatred is to not hate.'
She said her husband's mission was to save young people who were lost in resentment, anger, and hatred, and a sense of dissatisfaction with life. 'The young people he wanted to save were exactly those, like the one who took his life.'

Erika also announced she would take over as the new CEO of Turning Point USA and pledged to create thousands of new chapters, continuing to host the campus events Kirk started.
She said: 'Charlie Kirk and I share the same goals. His passion is my passion, and now his mission is my mission.'
Prosecutors last week formally charged the suspect, Robinson (Tyler Robinson) with seven felonies, including aggravated murder, illegal possession of a firearm, obstruction of justice, and witness tampering, and said they would seek the death penalty.