Turning Point USA Responds to Candace Owens Theories About Charlie Kirk's Death and Schedules Live Fact Check
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Turning Point USA Responds to Candace Owens Theories About Charlie Kirk's Death and Schedules Live Fact Check
After months of silence, Turning Point USA addresses Candace Owens's theories about Charlie Kirk's death. Blake Neff explains why the organization initially stayed quiet but now feels compelled to respond to accusations ranging from secret tunnels to financial impropriety. He announces a live fact-checking event scheduled for December 15th in Phoenix and invites Owens to participate in person. The response comes as Turning Point staffers report receiving intense backlash from Owens's followers, with donors threatening to pull support based on unsubstantiated claims. Owens responds that she cannot attend in person but offers to join virtually, sparking debate about the terms of engagement and whether a face-to-face confrontation will happen.
For months, Turning Point USA received hundreds, possibly thousands, of emails and calls asking them to respond to theories surrounding Charlie Kirk's death. People wanted the organization to invite Candace Owens on the show to address her claims. But for a long time, their approach was to say nothing.
There were several reasons for this silence. First, they thought her allegations were so absurd that nobody would believe them. They felt they shouldn't have to answer questions about secret tunnels or Egyptian Air Force planes following people around the country. That sort of thing seemed beneath contempt to respond to.
The second reason they said so little was because there's a good rule of thumb which Charlie followed: Do not feed the trolls. Focus on the mission. Reviving America, uplifting young people, making heaven crowded. Don't give air to people who want to tear you down.
Lastly, they didn't respond because Charlie always viewed Candace as a friend and they were holding out hope that she would return that friendship and stop what she was doing.
The Impact on Charlie's Legacy
Candace seems to feel that she is being a good friend to Charlie by trying to figure out who was responsible for his death. The other perspective is that in the midst of that supposed effort, she is destroying the fruit of his labor that he tried so hard to bring together.
Charlie worked to build a Republican coalition to vote Republican, to vote for the better, more freedom-minded candidate, even if there were disagreements on a variety of things. He did that through Turning Point. He did that by turning out the vote, by chasing ballots, by trying to figure out what everyone could agree on. What materials for this edifice of America could they agree on so they could actually build something?
This approach is juxtaposed with how progressives do things, which is: it doesn't matter what materials we're using as long as we are tearing the thing down. It's much more difficult to build than to destroy because you have to agree on materials.
Right now in the wake of Charlie's death, there are many different factions, many different fragments that don't agree on what the foundation should look like. Charlie was kind of holding a lot of that together. He was holding that together through Turning Point. He worked so hard, sprinted his race until he was 32 years old when God called him home.
Turning Point probably feels that everything Charlie built and tried to do is being undermined and questioned by someone who is potentially implicating Turning Point itself in Charlie's murder. That's why they now feel a need to defend themselves.
The Specific Claims Blake Neff Addresses
Blake Neff later said that Erika Kirk signed off on his statement and their efforts to fact check. They are now scheduling a time to fact check live and invited Candace to be a part of that.
Blake listed several theories that Candace Owens has put forth:
Details of Turning Point's Utah Valley University event were unusual
The assassination was an "inside job"
Charlie's security team intentionally denied him first aid after he was shot
Foreign aircrafts, specifically Egyptian planes, have followed Erika Kirk around the country
Mikey McCoy knew Charlie Kirk was going to be murdered but covered it up and was happy about Charlie Kirk's death
On the claim about Mikey McCoy, Blake said: "She has suggested that Michael McCoy, Charlie's chief of staff, knew Charlie would be murdered, was happy that he died and stayed silent because he was told he would be the next Charlie. She has suggested Michael is not his real name. It is. I have seen his birth certificate myself. She has called it suspicious that Mikey's wife, who works at Turning Point, helped plan the campus tour event where Charlie was murdered, which she didn't, by the way. She doesn't work on campus events."
Financial Allegations
Blake also addressed Candace's claim that Turning Point funds were unaccounted for. If this were true, it would be a criticism of Charlie's leadership and his responsibility. Here's what Blake had to say about that:
"She has made claims of financial impropriety and fraud at Turning Point, adding up into the millions of dollars, which again is not true. Charlie made sure the organization was audited by a third party every year. He personally reviewed and he signed off on every expense report and literally every single bill paid by the organization down to a single United States dollar. We have never missed a 990 deadline."
The Real Impact on Turning Point Staff
Blake Neff said that Turning Point staffers were receiving more hate from Candace's followers than Antifa. There are people calling Turning Point, possibly every day, saying they're no longer donating to Turning Point because they think TPUSA is involved in Charlie's murder somehow or they're not being transparent enough. The organization is being significantly impacted by these theories.
The Live Stream Announcement
Blake announced that on Monday, December 15th, they would do a live stream going claim by claim and debunking them. Candace would be welcome to join, not as an interviewee or as a debater or even as a guest, but just welcome to join into the live stream and ask whatever questions or bring whatever counterpoints she wants.
"Candace has mentioned several times that the ball is in our court," Blake said. "So, here's what is going to happen in the near future. There will be a live stream here in Phoenix where we address in a clear and comprehensive way the claims and accusations, the false accusations that have been made against Charlie's family, friends, and the people here at Turning Point. We plan to walk through everything carefully and thoroughly. If Candace is available, we would sincerely welcome her participation in that live stream at our studio here in Phoenix. At this point, we believe the ball is back in her court."
The parameters are direct: 4:00 p.m. Eastern, 2 p.m. Phoenix time on Monday, December 15th. A collection of Charlie's friends will respond to statements made by Candace to set the record straight once and for all prior to the opening of America Fest. They'll be live streaming from Charlie's Phoenix studio.
Why In-Person Matters
The invitation was specifically for an in-person appearance. When something is done remotely, even if it's not always nefarious or malicious, producers can feed information through earpieces, provide statistics, or guide responses. If the goal is to have the most beneficial and productive conversation possible, something face to face where everyone is privy to the same information right in front of them is most conducive to a good discussion.
Candace's Response
Candace responded on social media: "Kind of weird how you didn't email or call me to ask about times or availability and chose instead to tweet this confirmation out at midnight. Why am I learning about this on X? December 15th does not work in person and 2:00 p.m. PT is also the literal time I do my podcast live every day, which you knew, but we will happily cancel the daily podcast and we'll join you guys virtually instead for the live stream on the 15th if that works on your end. Let's lock it in."
She added: "We'll also add that I'm happy to jump on Charlie's show any day before then virtually as well. I was serious when I said we could do it today even virtually. I can make it happen pretty much any day because it's easier to move things around with the kids and find someone to sub for my morning homeschooling."
Some people noted that her oldest child is four years old, and questioned whether homeschooling commitments should prevent her from appearing in person on something that has dominated her content and seemingly her life for the past few months. If what she wants is truth and justice and transparency, this would be a huge opportunity to present her case face to face with people she alleges are involved in a betrayal of Charlie Kirk.
The Debate Over Terms
Candace later said: "So when you extend an invitation of live streaming and you don't explicitly say it must be in person, why would I assume that you're going to rescind the offer if I say that I can appear via live stream? They never said that when they made the offer and they were pretending that they were being sincere. They never made in person a point of their demands. They never also said that I had to respond within 24 hours. That's a hostage situation."
She explained that even if she could have made it work, which she couldn't because her husband said no and he has an important thing going on that day with people coming in from overseas, she wouldn't have confirmed within 24 hours because she has kids and would have needed time to organize things.
Where Things Stand
As of now, Blake has not responded to Candace Owens's new terms, even though she says the ball is in his court. It's unclear what will happen next or whether a virtual appearance will be accepted.
The situation is unfortunate. Turning Point is going to go through the claims and fact check them, but it's sad that they feel like they have to do this, that Charlie Kirk's legacy is being weighed in the court of public opinion. They surely would have preferred everyone to keep quiet for a bit so that the justice system can do what it's supposed to do, and as the trial goes on, ask questions about the veracity of the claims being made and the arguments by the prosecution and the defense.
It's not wrong to say something doesn't add up or seems strange or weird, and then to dig for truth. But innuendo-driven implication of people without any evidence of their involvement is a different matter entirely.
