欧博娱乐What to know about Charlie Kirk, Trump ally an
His social media and his eponymous daily podcast often offered clips of him debating with students about issues like climate change, faith and family values.
Kirk's comments on gender, race and politics often drew fierce liberal criticism. His opposition to gun control was among issues he discussed.
A few months ago, he said: "It's worth it to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment".
A clip of Trump himself plays at the beginning of Kirk's podcast: "I want to thank Charlie, he's an incredible guy, his spirit, his love of this country, he's done an amazing job building one of the most powerful youth organisations ever created."
The non-profit Kirk founded, Turning Point USA - a large part of his legacy - began after President Barack Obama was re-elected in 2012.
Its mission, aimed at young people, is to organise students to "promote the principles of fiscal responsibility, free markets, and limited government". It now has chapters at more than 850 colleges.
It played a key role in the get-out-the-vote effort for Trump and other Republican candidates in last year's election. He was also widely credited with helping to register tens of thousands of new voters and flipping Arizona for Trump.
The relationship between Kirk and Trump grew after Trump's victory, with Kirk attending Trump's inauguration in January in Washington DC. He was a regular visitor at the White House during both Trump terms in office.
According to the New York Times, he played golf with Trump just two days before the president's 2025 presidential inauguration.
In January he travelled with Trump's son, Donald Trump Jr, to Greenland, as the then-incoming president was arguing that the US should own the Arctic territory.
Kirk also addressed the Oxford Union - a debating society at Oxford University - earlier this year, and in 2020, wrote a best-seller, The Maga Doctrine, a reference to Trump's "Make America Great Again" campaign.