Charlie Kirk
Charlie Kirk | |
|---|---|
 Kirk at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in 2017 | |
| Born | October 14, 1993 |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Political operative |
| Years active | 2012-present |
| Organization | Turning Point USA |
| Notable work | Time for a Turning Point (with Brent Hamachek) |
| Website | www.tpusa.com |
Charlie Kirk (born October 14, 1993) is the founder and executive director of Turning Point USA, an advocacy group for young conservatives. A frequent guest on Fox News, Fox Business, and CNBC, he led the "millennial assault" during Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign.[1][2]
Early life and education
Kirk was raised in Wheeling, Illinois. Although not active in politics, his parents were conservative, and his father, Robert W. Kirk, was the project architect manager for Trump Tower in New York.[3] In 7th grade, he was a volunteer for then-representative Mark Kirk (to whom he is not related), and in high school he worked on Kirk's Senate campaign. He also founded SOS Liberty, a student awareness organization he described as an "international distress call for help" related to "Washington’s massive debts and deficits." An Eagle Scout and an athlete, he reportedly said that his dream was to attend the US Military Academy but he entered "head first" into politics when he was rejected from West Point. Kirk was accepted to Baylor University, but chose not to attend. He later enrolled in classes Harper College, a community college in Palatine, Illinois .[4][5][6]
Career
In 2012 Kirk wrote an essay for Breitbart titled "Liberal Bias Starts in High School Economics Textbooks." Then a high school senior, he gained national attention for the essay, leading to an appearance on Fox News.[7] At a speaking engagement at Benedictine University's "Youth Empowerment Day," Kirk met Bill Montgomery, a retiree 50 years his senior, who was then a Tea Party-backed legislative candidate. Montgomery encouraged Kirk to skip Baylor and focus instead on a political career. He enrolled at a comprehensive community college, and subsequently founded Turning Point USA, a "grass-roots organization to rival liberal groups such as MoveOn.org." At the 2012 Republican National Convention, Kirk met Foster Friess, a prominent Republican donor, and persuaded him to finance the organization. Kirk continued to live with his parents until 2015. [8]
Kirk joined the Trump Campaign 70 days prior to the 2016 election. In an interview with Wired at the Republican National Convention, he said that while he "was not the world's biggest Donald Trump fan," he would vote for him, and that Trump's candidacy made Turning Point's mission to "spread the conservative message in high schools and college campuses" more difficult. Kirk spoke at the convention.[9]
As of November 2016, Turning Point USA reported chapters at over 1,000 college and high-school campuses.[10] Kirk was the "driving force" behind the organization's Professor Watchlist, a website that identifies professors that "discriminate against conservative students and advance leftist propaganda in the classroom." Professor Watchlist has been widely criticized. The New York Times wrote that it was "a threat to academic freedom,"[11] while Salon wrote simply that it was "a sign of the stupidity of the post truth era."[12]
Kirk has appeared on almost exclusively conservative media outlets, such as Fox News, CNBC, and Fox Business Network. He has also had many other interviews with organizations such as Truth Revolt,[13] Bloomberg Politics[14] and Opportunity Lives.[15]
Kirk is the co-author of Time For a Turning Point: Setting a Course Toward Free Markets and Limited Government for Future Generations, published by Simon and Schuster in 2016.[16]
References
- ^ Hall, Cheryl (November 11, 2016). "How two Dallas young guns helped deliver the White House to Trump". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
- ^ Nelson, Rebecca (March 25, 2015). "The 21-Year-Old Becoming a Major Player in Conservative Politics". The Atlantic. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
- ^ Garriga, Melissa (2016-12-06). "Meet Charlie Kirk, the ProfessorWatchlist Keeper: Just another brick in the wall". Washington Babylon. Retrieved 2017-02-19.
- ^ Lester, Kerry (November 30, 2016). "Wheeling High graduate behind conservative 'Professor Watchlist". Daily Herald. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
- ^ Valade, Paul (April 29, 2013). "Perfect storm launches 19-year-old Wheeling native into political punditry". Daily Herald. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
- ^ Kirk, Charlie (June 1, 2012). "A high school student's message for Washington". Fox. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
- ^ Kirk, Charlie (April 26, 2012). "Liberal Bias Starts in High School Economics Textbooks". Breitbart. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
- ^ Bykowitz, Julie (May 7, 2015). "This Boy Wonder Is Building the Conservative MoveOn.org in an Illinois Garage". Bloomberg. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
- ^ Lapowsky, Issey (July 20, 2016). "At the Republican Convention, Millennials Search for Signs of the Future". Wired. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
- ^ Paiella, Gabriella (November 22, 2016). "This Conservative College Group Is Keeping a Watch List of Left-Leaning Professors Across America". New York Magazine. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
- ^ Mele, Christopher (November 27, 2016). "Professor Watchlist Is Seen as Threat to Academic Freedom". The New York Times. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
- ^ McClennan, Sofia A. (December 4, 2016). "Academic witch hunts are back: The new McCarthyism, a sign of the stupidity of the post-truth era". Salon. Salon. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
- ^ "Turning Point USA Mobilizing Young Conservatives". Truth Revolt. 2014.
- ^ Bykowicz, Julie (May 7, 2015). "This Boy Wonder Is Building the Conservative MoveOn.org in an Illinois Garage". Bloomberg Politics.
- ^ Huizinga, Daniel (June 19, 2015). "Turning Point USA Leads the Way in Engaging and Energizing Young Conservatives".
- ^ "Time for A Turning Point". simonandschuster.com. Simon and Schuster. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
