Watch live: Trump, Vance and Charlie Kirk’s widow to speak at conservative activist's memorial service
Tens of thousands of people are expected to gather at an Arizona football stadium to honour the life and legacy of slain conservative political activist Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated almost two weeks ago on a Utah university campus.
Expected among the masses are some of the Republican Party’s top leaders, including U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice-President JD Vance — both of whom are expected to deliver speeches — leading members of their administration and several prominent members of the MAGA movement.
“We’re going to celebrate the life of a great man today,” Trump told reporters as he left the White House on Sunday, according to the Associated Press . “It will be a tough day.”
The anticipated 73,000-plus at State Farm Stadium in Glendale and thousands more expected to gather at a spillover site at Desert Diamond Arena across the street will also hear from Erika Kirk, the deceased’s widow, who on Thursday was named the new CEO of her late husband’s Turning Point movement.
The memorial service, titled “Building a Legacy: Remembering Charlie Kirk,” is set to begin at 2 p.m. EST and can be watched live at the top of this story.
Other speakers for the event include White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, Donald Trump Jr., former FOX news host Tucker Carlson, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, and Director of the White House Presidential Personnel Office Sergio Gor.
According to Turning Point USA , contemporary American Christian performers Chris Tomlin, Brandon Lake, Phil Wickham and husband-and-wife duo Cody and Kari Jobe Carnes will lead the worship, which will also include musical performances by Lee Greenwood and Steve Amerson.
The Dress code for the event was “Sunday Best – Red, White or Blue.” As seen in the live videos, many of the attendees who started showing up at 8 a.m. and quickly filled the stadium’s lower bowl were decked out in patriot colours as they sang along and danced to live Christian music being played on stage.
With Trump et. al in attendance, security is at its highest for the event and hopeful attendees were warned of long wait times and a strict no bag policy.
As reported by ABC earlier this week, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) assigned it a Level Special Event Assessment Rating, the agency’s highest, reserved for events like the Super Bowl and Boston Marathon.
ABC also obtained a memo from DHS, the FBI, the Secret Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), which said the agencies were “tracking several threats of unknown credibility” against Trump, Vance and members of the Kirk family.
Kirk died from a single gunshot wound while speaking outside at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10. Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old suspected gunman, has been charged with murder. A clear motive for the murder hasn’t been established, but charging documents indicate text messages between Robinson and his transgender romantic partner that he had “had enough” of Kirk’s hatred.
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