Sponsors, Conservatives Spurn Liberal Podcasters, Dave Chappelle After Jokes About Charlie Kirk’s Death

Left-wing podcasters and a comedian are facing backlash for making light of the murder of conservative activist Charlie Kirk in the wake of the midterm elections, with several brands ending sponsorship deals over the comments. Kirk’s political activism organization, Turning Point USA, sought to carry on his legacy of mobilizing young voters ahead of the election. The poor performance of candidates backed by the group, now led by Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, has led some conservatives to sour on it. On the other side of the aisle, liberals are rejoicing over what they see as the group’s floundering without its founder.On Thursday, liberal podcast host Jennifer Welch gleefully read through social media posts celebrating Democratic victories, including one that read, “We’re digging up Charlie Kirk and doing it again.” Ms. Welch and her “I’ve Had It” podcast co-host, Angie Sullivan, burst out laughing before saying, “No comment.”Ms. Sullivan added, “Other than he was shot by someone that was MAGA … so do with that what you will.” While the family of Kirk’s suspected shooter is reportedly conservative, officials have said the alleged gunman held leftist views. On Saturday, comedian Dave Chappelle also joked about Kirk’s death, saying, “I feel [expletive] up saying this. It’s scary being a public speaker.”“Ever since that guy Charlie Kirk got murdered, and I shouldn’t say this publicly, but I feel better,” he said. “I know I shouldn’t say that, but it’s just a feeling. I didn’t ask to feel this way… I just be driving around like, ‘Why am I in such a good mood? Oh!’”Ms. Kirk responded to the “I’ve Had It” video and Mr. Chappelle’s remarks, writing on X, “To see leftist podcasters, comedians, and commentators laugh about political assassination as though it’s entertainment and the destruction of a human life is a punchline, is beyond disgusting.”Ms. Kirk wrote that a “culture that laughs at assassination is one of profound moral decay.” She added that people should be able to “recognize the value of” another person’s life without agreeing with them politically. Nearly two dozen brands have sought to distance themselves from the “I’ve Had It” podcast, either by cutting off sponsorship deals or publicly committing not to pursue future partnerships.A life insurance company, Ethos, wrote on X on Saturday, “We don’t condone or align with the comments made on the ‘I’ve had it’ podcast. What was said on this show doesn’t reflect our values, and we don’t condone violence in any form. We’ve ended our advertising relationship and won’t be working with them moving forward.”On Sunday night, a supplement company, Momentous, wrote on Instagram that it was “immediately ending” its sponsorship of the podcast. Ms. Welch and Ms. Sullivan offered an apology on Saturday, writing on Instagram that they “should not have laughed” at the post mocking Kirk’s death, and that they “regret” doing so. The pair said they made a donation to a gun control advocacy organization, Everytown for Gun Safety.However, as the sponsors announced the end to their partnerships, the podcast hosts bashed Turning Point USA for putting pressure on companies to cut ties with the show. Ms. Welch claimed that Turning Point USA is trying to stir up controversy surrounding her show because the conservative organization is in “big trouble” after several candidates it backed lost, in several cases, by double digits. “So now they’re trying to ignite a war with us because they want to prove to their donors they can prove, ‘We can cancel libs,’” Ms. Welch said. The podcast host clarified that she did not issue an apology for Turning Point’s sake, but so that when she advocates for gun control measures, she can do so with a “clean and clear” conscience. While the liberal commentators are facing criticism for their comments, some Republicans appear to be deeply frustrated with Turning Point, especially in the organization’s home state of Arizona.Kirk was widely credited with helping to mobilize young voters, especially young men, to vote for Republicans in the 2024 election. Without him, the group failed to replicate its success. Exit polls from the November 3 election found that 73 percent of voters under 30 cast their ballots for Democratic candidates. In 2024, young voters were roughly evenly divided between President Trump and Vice President Harris.Last week, the former chairwoman of the Arizona Republican Party, Gina Swoboda, told a local news outlet, 12 News, “Turning Point Action never has and never will function the way that they intend it to and the donors should stop giving money to an organization that is going to fund our destruction as a party.”Ms. Swoboda’s comments came after Turning Point gave roughly $18 million to support the Arizona Republican gubernatorial nominee, Andy Biggs, who lost to the incumbent Democratic governor, Katie Hobbs, by 13 points. A conservative commentator, Jonah Goldberg, also barbed, “Thank God TPUSA mobilized the youth vote.” Several conservative commentators criticized Mr. Goldberg for his post, arguing it was insensitive in light of Kirk’s murder. However, he shot back, saying he was not making fun of the shooting, and insisting that it is fair game to criticize the organization for failing to fulfill its promises after raking in millions of dollars in donations. Turning Point USA had promised to build a “red wall” in Arizona, Nevada, and New Hampshire. However, New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte was the only candidate supported by the group in those three states to win.

Sponsors, Conservatives Spurn Liberal Podcasters, Dave Chappelle After Jokes About Charlie Kirk’s Death

Sponsors, Conservatives Spurn Liberal Podcasters, Dave Chappelle After Jokes About Charlie Kirk’s Death

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