Charlie Kirk assassin radicalized by “deep, dark internet”

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It's Brian Kilmead. Ha ha, he is indeed the most approachable, most intelligent, most lovable, kind, and amazing host. His name is Brian Kilmead. With the day off, this is your humble DC correspondent, Griff Jenkins, getting the privilege and honor of sitting in again.

Somehow, I didn't break it the first time, so Allison, Pete, and Eric seem to have brought me back. And what a day we have. You know, I'm coming live to you from the Tony Snow Radio Studio in DC. It's a show that I started. And produced.

And as Tony's producer, and I was able to obviously, he was a mentor and a close, close friend. And we miss him every single day. And I get goosebumps when they ask me to sit down at this microphone in the studio he graced, looking up on the wall at a giant Steve Pinley portrait of the snowman, as we called him, as I'll called him. He called me Surfer Boy. That was his nickname for me.

You know, I think of that relationship. And I think of what maybe Tony Snow would have to say about this. He's often attributed a quote that I believe he first wrote, then he would use it in speeches and whatnot, saying that his quote was: We've got to rebuild human hearts. And persuade people that hope is not just possible, but essential. And it it's a very poignant quote in this moment because he's right.

We have got to in the wake of this tragic Shooting of Charlie Kirk rebuilds human hearts, particularly those out there that in some way find a reason to celebrate such a heinous and despicable act, regardless of your politics. But I digress. We'll talk more about this because we have an extremely special guest coming on right now. And as one radio producer to another, we are fortunate. Right now to have Andrew Colvett, Charlie Kirk's producer, joining us.

He did the great Charlie Kirk show, and he hosted that show on Friday, which I know was very difficult. And today, he's at the White House, where Vice President Vance will be taking that microphone. Andrew, thanks for joining us. Thanks, Greg. It's a pleasure to be with you.

Well, and I know, you know, I remember when Tony passed, I was thrust into doing a lot of interviews that were extremely difficult because of the emotional component that came with it. But you have been doing some amazing interviews. You were on Maria Bartiromo this morning. You were really talking about it. And, you know, I ran down the hall and said, Hey, Andrew, I want to get you on because I think we're learning things.

When you were producing the show with Charlie, you talked about the fact that Charlie would take every commercial break to read messages from viewers. And that really stood out to me. Tell me about that. Yeah, you know, it was something that he took from Rush Limbaugh because Rush was sort of famous for reading his listener emails. And when we started the show, Charlie actually knew Rush Limbaugh.

Rush Limbaugh was quietly and privately a large donor to Turning Point. Um his his widow uh After he passed, let us you know, say that publicly. And Charlie loved Rush, and I was a rush baby. Charlie was a rush baby. Charlie used to run in his lunch breaks and listen to Rush Limbaugh.

Um at school. Um which is a very uh nerdy and wonderful and uh endearing thing that he would do. And um And yeah, so we we when we started the show, We we s started with freedom at charliekirk.com and we We uh Charlie made the vow that he was going to read every email that a listener sent him. And I don't think he knew what he was getting himself into because of just how rapidly the show grew. And you know, we had 2 to 2.5 million viewers or listeners of the Charlie Kirk show every day.

And so, you know, depending on the topic, it would just get flooded. And he would, I watched him go through each email and he would scan it at the very least. It was uh and oftentimes he would even Um you know, start you know be start debating people That would email him and they'd say, You're wrong, Charlie, or you're right. And he would get into these, like, and I would, I would, I had access to the email. And sometimes I would see these.

in the set folder. Yeah. It was the kind of thing I would do most days. Yeah. communicating with and you would see these long like five six seven email long threads Threads with the same listener, and they're debating back and forth in the middle of the show.

And it was just the most remarkable thing. Uh because you know here I am barely able to keep up with My duties on the show and what I had to do and Charlie's posting it, thinking through, sharpening his arguments. And debating with uh people or or just saying thank you or God bless you or whatever. I mean, there was probably more of more of those positive ones, but Um you know it was it was a remarkable thing and it made him so Close and accessible to the grassroots. And that's ultimately, you know, from a political standpoint, there's many ways you could dissect who Charlie Kirk was.

But from a political standpoint, you know, he was a grassroots warrior. He often said, you know, I just want a conservative that's worthy of its voters. It's as conservative as it as its base. And so he saw himself as a as a voice Um Everyday Americans all across the country that had common sense and virtue, but they didn't have power, name ID. And he knew that God had blessed him with both of those things.

and influence at the highest level. He was so close to the people that listened to his show. And he did that through emails and through other means, and obviously through visiting college campuses and being so close to young people. He knew. the needs, wants, and concerns of Real everyday Americans, the people that put Trump in office better than anybody in this country, especially anybody with such a prominent role as he had.

And he He just loved it. I mean, that's the thing. I mean, you could look at it as. Yeah. something he did for as a discipline, but he just loved Mm-hmm.

He sure did. And, you know, that was the parallel that I saw with our late friend Tony Snow because he loved it too. You know, Andrew, to a degree, to a fault, to a degree, Tony Snow also, I think, shared with Charlie the fact that they saw the best in everybody, even the most egregious critics. He saw the best in them. And, you know, I, like you, I suppose I'm not necessarily a Rush kid because I was in the game.

I started Ollie North Show in the 90s, but Tony Snow would frequently fill in for Rush. I'll never forget. Talent on loan from God. But yet, you know, I am shaped by the years of Rush. And, you know, the Ollie North Show was 3-6 p.m.

We came on right after. We were always sort of the conservative movement grew in the 90s and then 2000s. But yet, Charlie. Has taken it further than Rush. And further than those that were the loudest voices.

And I think that's why you're seeing the outpouring. A little later in this hour, we're going to have a young student that was profoundly moved, became a TPUSA member, just one of thousands. But you are also talking about the fact that you believe, because of Charlie and what you've done as well, you are part of this, a big part of it. You're seeing one of the greatest generational realignments in modern times. Speak to me about that.

Yeah, and you know, you said something that uh you know, Charlie loved the people that he was interacting with and engaging with. The internet being what the internet is, the clips where Charlie was being a little bit more fiery are the ones that would go viral. But That is A misrepresentation of his interaction with most people. 90% of his interactions were soft and they were kind and they were. patient and one of the the things especially as Charlie got older.

Um that the People recognize in his debate style is just how patient he was. I mean, there's so many comments: I can't believe how patient Charlie is. I would have been yelling at this person before. But he saw his roles. When he first started on campus, he was in his.

early twenties. And so he was more like a peer arguing with a peer. But when he got to be 29, 30, 31. He realized that he was more of a big brother figure. And he tried to understand and to listen and to meet people on their level.

And he, you know, and I just love that, what you said. because he loved Those people and never, if they had bad ideas, that was not a disqualifier to them as human beings. He was like, I want to correct your thinking. because you're worth it and because our country's worth it. And that's something that's been weighing on my heart.

Just because some of the more fiery interactions, the internet loves to spread those, or Charlie destroys Woke Lib, or whatever. That was such a small part. of actually the way Charlie interacted with people. And um And it was because he loved those he was interacting with. And I think, Andrew, you know, it wasn't a trait that Charlie had.

It was a gift. Tony had that gift. Few people have that gift. And I think it's rooted clearly in their faith. And, you know, Charlie obviously was as strong of a faith leader as he was a conservative advocate.

Hey, listen, before I run out of time, producer to producer here, you got a big show to do today. You got the vice president taking the microphone. What are you going to do? What's the vice president's message? What do you see happening?

Well, I just want to say one thing. Charlie wanted revival. not revolution. His faith led everything that he did. And he was a man of integrity, even in the most private moments.

And yeah, we're so honored by the vice president hosting the show. It was his idea. And so, of course, we dropped everything. We flew to DC. I'm doing this interview from the White House right now, compound at least.

I, yeah, it's going to be an amazing, amazing honor and a tribute to Charlie and their friendship. JD and Charlie, we're dear friends. And um and you know we've got a guest list that will will blow most people's minds and it's going to be an amazing time because the most uh prominent leaders in our country all had a personal relationship with Charlie. And um uh when we when we asked uh who could join it was like Uh Everybody. you know revolving around this administration wanted to be a part of it.

Well, I can tell you this. When I saw you on Maria this morning, I told Allison and Eric and Pete, I said, that's the guest I want more than anybody because Andrew Colvett certainly understands. Hey, quickly, I'll let you go in 60 seconds, Andrew, but talk to me about the memorial coming this weekend. You actually think it's going to even exceed the capacity of the seating. Oh, yeah, without a question.

We're already working on overflow. When we put out you know, that we were holding the memorial on Sunday at Cardinal Stadium in Phoenix, people are saying that it holds 70,000.

Well, No, that's that's when the field is taken up. It's going to hold over 100,000 people. Yeah. And it's, yeah, we've already received an overwhelming deluge of people who want to come, and we want to make sure that as many of those as possible can can Be a part of that event, and the president's coming, and the vice president, and Erica Kirk will be speaking.

So, so many more. it's going to be a real tribute to the legacy. I I believe the eternal legacy of Charlie Kirk. And it'll be an honor to be there. It's going to be a beautiful tribute.

And, you know, we didn't even get into my goodness, the power of Erica. And, you know, her comments about the fire that burns in her now as a widow. It's just remarkable. No one. could have ever been.

No no one ever could have could have uh you know s giving her a pass to just Closed the door, you know, but she didn't. She didn't shut down. She's fighting. You know, I've got to let you go. But final word on Erica.

She is fierce. She is one of the most excessive. honest humans I've ever been around. Um She is strong and she is real and just a phenomenal, phenomenal woman. She is, you know, without a doubt, she is the the the focal the focal point, the spiritual center.

of TPUSA moving forward, there's no doubt. Indeed, and we look forward to that. You've got a great radio show coming up. Great job. And I'll leave you with this, Andrew.

I know you already know this, but just so you hear it, Charlie would be awfully proud of what you're doing. Thanks for joining us. Thanks, sir. Appreciate it. This is your humble D.C.

correspondent, dealing with the news as we continue to process the loss of Charlie Kirk and where this all goes and what it all means. I'm Griff Jenkins on the great Brian Kilmead Show. We'll be back diving deep into today's top stories. It's Brian Kilmead. Fall is planting season.

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From his mouth to your ears, it's Brian Killmead. The great Brian Killmade show. This is your humble DC correspondent, Griff Jenkins, trying to fill the shoes of Brian. He's got the day off. And we are just still processing, trying to figure out what this all means.

And there's grief and anger at the same time. And I think it's worth noting. That and what an incredible interview we just had with Andrew Colvett, Charlie Kirk's radio producer. And as the former producer of a radio show, I obviously felt a strong tie, and I wanted to tie a little bit of Charlie's legacy to Tony because I saw so many similarities. But in these moments, leaders are born in crisis.

And I think that, you know, Utah Governor Spencer Cox. Really rose to the occasion. The Wall Street Journal has an op-ed about it today, talking about when his job was to obviously the president announce his suspects in custody on Fox and Friends on Friday. That thrusts in motion a press conference, which may or may not have already been planned to happen, but it certainly put it on a fast track. And the governor's got to go out there and make the official announcement and talk about it.

But he took a moment to stop, to put it in context, and urged Americans, particularly young ones, to log off, turn off, touch grass, hug a family member, do good in your community. He really drove that message and says, you know, this is a moment. History will dictate if this is a turning point for our country. He did a bunch of interviews over the weekend as well. Here's a little bit of him talking about the real power of Charlie Kirk.

Listen here, cut five. I'm not saying we have to just sing kumbaya and hold hands. What I'm saying is we actually should disagree. I think Charlie represented that better than anyone. Charlie said some very inflammatory things, and in some corners of the web, that's all people have heard.

But he also said some other things about forgiveness. He said some amazing things about when things get dark, putting down our phones, reading scripture, going to church, talking to our neighbors. He said that we have to engage. And that's what I appreciate most about Charlie Kirk. He said, if we don't keep talking, that's when the violence starts.

And, you know, we just heard from Andrew Cole that that Charlie Kirk that he knew, that he was so close to, worked with every day, was one that 90% of the interactions, even with those that vehemently disagreed with Charlie, were kind. And that's who Charlie Kirk was. I just want to play one quick soundbite of Erica Kirk. We were so stunned by her comments on Friday. And we are going to get to talk to a young college student that was impacted tremendously by this movement.

We'll ask her a little bit about this. But first, the widow, Erica Kirk, in her own words, cut 15. To everyone listening tonight across America, the movement my husband built will not die. It won't. I refuse to let that happen.

They will not die. All of us. Will refuse to let that happen. No one. will ever forget my husband's name, and I will make sure of it.

It will become stronger. bolder, louder, and greater than ever. Bolder, louder, and greater than ever. Rarely do I watch someone publicly speaking and just think of the gravity of the profound statements that she's making, choosing, no one would blame Erica Kirk for closing the door and just collapsing in grief because that's what she's feeling, but yet she's leading. And you will hear on the other side of this break from an actual student, one of the hundreds of thousands whose life was changed because of Turning Point USA.

We'll be right back on the Brian Kill Meat Show. I'm Griff Jenkins. America is built on hard work and power. Powered by American energy, Chevron has spent $44 billion with local businesses across all 50 states since 2022, fueling infrastructure and communities, all while strengthening local economies. Last year, Chevron increased U.S.

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The realist of the real, the Brian Kilmead show. Brian Kilmead out today. Griff Jenkins, your DC humble correspondent, trying to fill his giant shoes here and talking today as we all sort of try and process the passing of Charlie Kirk and wonder what this means for the country and where things go. And one thing that certainly would appear quite clear if you heard the widow of Charlie Kirk, Erica Kirk's words on Friday, that this turning point USA movement is only going to grow stronger. And so.

I wanted to take a moment to bring in a very, very special guest because we have heard the beautiful tributes and will continue to do so of those that knew Charlie so well. But as we were hearing a little earlier from Charlie Kirk's producer Andrew Colvett, that there are already, just in the wake of Charlie's passing, some 37,000 requests to start chapters with TPUSA to create and get involved in a movement that already has over 900 chapters across the country. And I am Very fortunate to have watched a young, beautiful, intelligent, amazing woman grow up from high school. This is Sarah Ello. She is one of my daughter, Madeline's best friends.

I watched him grow up in high school and they went to college together. And during this period, particularly at college, Sarah actually got involved, joined it, and became part of this movement that everyone's talking about. And Sarah, thank you for joining us and coming on. And I know you obviously are devastated by this news, but I thought it would be helpful for viewers and listeners to sort of understand why this movement touched so many young people in what Andrew Colvett was calling a generational realignment towards conservative values, towards faith. Sarah, thanks for joining us.

Hi, yeah, thank you so much for having me. I started getting involved with Turning Point my sophomore year of college. And the first thing that I ever went to a turning point was Georgia was hosting. Rob Smith, who advertised himself as the black gay veteran, and I thought that that really caught my attention. I was already conservative at the time.

But it was around the time of the 2020 election from what I remember. And so things were pretty heated. And I went with my roommate in college, and we absolutely loved it. We started going to weekly meetings afterwards, and I actually interned for Turning Point my fall semester. Of my junior year and continued going to the weekly meetings.

I went to a couple of their conferences, one in West Palm and one in Dallas, Texas. And it just felt like such a sanctuary on campus to be part of a bigger community that thinks like myself. I really liked it, but at the same time, it also really pushed me outside my comfort zone. Part of my job with Turning Point was to table on campus where we set up a big table. where there's a lot of footwork on campus or people walking by on campus.

had the big signs, the turning point slogans, like big government sucks.

So it caught everybody's attention and I was engaging with people who having these conversations with people who really disagreed with me and I thought you know, that was really pivotal and that was something that Charlie Kirk really fought for was to have these open lines of communications between parties and people with different beliefs. And I just really admired what you said for it really clicked with me. And I just loved my experience with it. Did you forget to meet Charlie? I didn't, but I did see him speak.

I think twice. at both of those conferences. And hearing about your experiences, and I applaud Sarah, not only do I love you because I feel like I've watched you grow up, but you found within your association with Turning Point this confidence to find your voice. And do you feel like that did help you find your voice and that we're seeing this movement, Charlie, start across the country, countless other young people like yourself find their voices? I do think it helped me find my voice.

This election was a tough one. It was very heated, very contentious. And I've had people tell me to be silent and not tell people that I voted like who I voted for and I disagree with that. It's not what Charlie Kirk would have wanted. I always tell people if they're going to ask me who I vote for, I'll be honest, and I will have a conversation with you about why I voted, like my voting choice, because that's what you would have wanted.

Like, that's the biggest thing I took away from Charlie Kirk, is that he was always willing to have a conversation with people who disagreed with him. That was what he wanted. And it's so important in our democracy. I think that he embodied values that every conservative and every person in our country who's engaging in our political system. Should strive to embody.

He was respectful, articulate, truthful, and just so well-intentioned. And so Yeah, and Sarah, you obviously had that table set up. You were engaging. How important do you think it is that we do have the peaceful exchange of ideas and discussion and conversation on these campuses? I think it's really important.

I don't think it gets enough attention how how divided our country is right now. And the right way to fix it is not by silencing yourself, it's by talking respectfully and having these open lines of communication.

So I do think it's really important. And I hope that turning point comes to more college campuses because it was It was such a great Great idea to set up a table and I mean people of all political beliefs would come up to talk to me and I always It was always a nice conversation. I can't actually remember any bad experiences. I definitely got some bad luck, but. I imagine you did.

That's the environment we live in. And, you know, your generation, unlike mine and ones before you, really didn't have the vitriol that you have on social media. You're the first generation that really had to process and deal with it. And obviously, social media brings out the worst of people in that environment. And it sort of has spilled over some into real life.

And Charlie, you know, and Governor Cox was talking about sometimes it's important just to tune out, turn off, you know, engage in family time, faith, do something other than doom scrolling. Do you feel like that's a lesson that will come out of this, particularly for younger people? I hope so. And that's actually one of the things that's frustrating the most about this whole past week is All the negative commentary in my social media feed, and a lot of it was based on incomplete clips of Charlie Kirk that were really lifted out of context. And it's just really frustrating.

A lot of people, especially my generation, get their research and news. From social media, and they don't go back and watch the entire video from which that snippet was taken from, and they think it's true, they're reading it at face value. There like judging his entire life's worth and mission based on a 10 or 20 second clip. it's really disheartening to me and it's not what Charlie Kirk would have wanted. He always led with facts and statistics and did his research and That's something that I really hope people follow in its footsteps and stop hitting posts so blindly.

Well, I'll tell you this: it's pretty darn clear, Sarah, that Charlie's widow, Erica Kirk, is not going to be dismayed in the slightest by the criticism that her late husband's getting. And, you know, this is a woman for whom the world would never have blamed for shutting the door, turning out the lights, and collapsing in grief. Instead, she found remarkable composure and delivered poignant words of defiance on Friday. I just want to play a little bit of that, and we'll get your thoughts on Erica Kirk. Cut 16, guys.

The evildoers responsible for my husband's assassination. Have no idea. But they have done. They killed Charlie because he preached a message of patriotism, faith, and of God's merciful love. They should all know this.

If you thought that my husband's mission was powerful before? You have no idea. You have no idea what you just have unleashed across this entire country and this world. You have no idea. You have no idea the fire that you have ignited within this wife.

The cries of this widow will echo around the world like a battle cry. Powerful words, Sarah. Powerful. And it certainly seems that, you know, she is determined that the mission her husband started will continue. What are your thoughts?

Yes, very powerful words. She did great on Friday night. And I hope that everything that she says is true. I hope that the turning point movement doesn't die on campuses. I do think it's going to get stronger, like you said.

There's been a huge uptick in turning point job applications and charters to set up at different colleges and high schools.

So I hope that it grows and it gets stronger and it opens people's eyes to how much work this country needs to do with engaging in a respectful debate. And so will you know you continue to follow Turning Point? Are you still working with it? Like what is you know, for a young person, w what what is the situation now with with being involved? I am not.

I graduated from the University of Georgia in 2023 and I'm still continuing my education with law school now. And but I still followed him on social media. I enjoyed watching his. like videos and I I think I still pa follow the turning point at University of Georgia. I like keeping up with it, but unfortunately, I don't think all schools have children.

Doctors. No, they don't. And I'm so proud of you, you, like my daughter, pursuing a legal degree. But, you know, let me take just a moment and thank you for joining us and sharing this perspective because I don't think people really understand, or I've heard from people like yourself who actually lived the mission of Charlie Kirk and what he's trying to do. But but I do want you to take a moment, Sarah, to speak.

Speak directly to a young high school kid or a college student right now listening to you, listening to your experience and how it impacted you in a positive way. What do you say to that young high schooler coming up that may be feeling that their voice isn't represented, that they feel intimidated to speak out about their faith or their values that they hold? I think Turning Point will give you a community and it'll. teach you to be confident in what you believe in. In high school, I don't know if I ever would have talked to somebody.

I mean, I would have talked to somebody with differing beliefs, but I wouldn't have been wouldn't have been so confident to do so and realize the importance of it. I say definitely get involved. You'll find the community a turning point, and it'll also push you outside your comfort zone, like it did for me. Um I I have nothing bad to say about it. I loved my experience in it and I hope that more people get involved, especially at a young age.

Well, that's it's a remarkable thing, and I appreciate you coming on. And I'll just give you the last few seconds here. You know, when you sort of heard the news, you were devastated. And now you we've all been sort of processing it. What what are your final thoughts about about Charlie and and and what we've witnessed?

I think it was a terrible thing. Tragedy. It was an act of political violence. It was an attack on our First Amendment, our freedom of speech. He was doing something that he was.

extremely passionate about and beyond well-intentioned. Like I said, he was respectful, articulate, truthful. And I hope that more people can learn from him on both sides. on all sides of the political spectrum. and acts with kindness, dignity, and truthfulness because it's just so important.

in this day and age So it is so important. It is so important. And it is on those college campuses. That was the genius of Charlie. Not only did he have the gift to engage and take it directly to the college campuses where there is so much of a one-sided, often opinion, and it's not in the conservative bent, but he wanted to be there in person to engage and create that dialogue through words.

He was shot holding a microphone using his words, the very thing that our nation was founded on, the very thing that was so important and important to the movement, which is clearly only going to grow. Sarah Eloho, thank you for taking time and sharing that with us. It's a remarkable insight and very kind words. And, you know, hopefully some young people have been listening to you talk and your ability to sort of find your voice through this. And good luck with that legal degree.

I know you're doing. Doing well, and that's because you are an intelligent, brilliant, smart young woman. Sarah L. O., thank you for joining us. Thank you so much for having me.

All right. This is your humble DC correspondent, Griff Jenkins, filling in on the great Brian Kilmead Show. We've got a whole lot more coming up. Don't go anywhere. Both sides, all opinions.

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Brian Killmade. A radio show like no other, and one that is. Fearless, the Brian Kilmead Show. This is your humble DC correspondent, Riff Jenkins, filling in today for Brian Kilmead. And I say this show is fearless.

Because we are Willing to hold the power brokers to account and call them out when they say things.

So Here's where I was one week ago today. I was sitting on the streets of Chicago with some incredible Ice Law enforcement agents, as we were waiting to apprehend. which we did, an illegal criminal alien. from Mexico. who had been convicted last year of forcible sexual assault of a child under the age of thirteen.

Let me say that again. Convicted of forcible sexual assault in Illinois, that's the word they use for rape, of a child under the age of 18. Yet this individual was out. on the streets and had a court appointed uh sexual therapy of some sort. And we were picking him up before he headed to that appointment to be re rehabilitated by the government.

We call out Lawmakers on this show when they say Perp. Preposterous things like this one from Texas Democrat Jasmine Crockett. Listen. But as somebody who understands history. When I see ICE, I see slave patrols.

Now I never lived through the slave patrol period, but if you know the history of policing in this country, then you understand that they were born out of slave patrols. That is so over the top, that is so loaded, that is exactly. Why you have acting ICE director Todd Lyons, Tricia McLaughlin, everyone involved with trying to crack down on the consequences of the four years of the Biden border crisis, which has left us with hundreds of thousands of violent criminal illegal aliens from coast to coast in every state, in every city in America. And yet they are trying to get that under they shut the border down.

Now they're trying to remove those that pose a threat to our communities. And for Jasmine Crockett to compare ICE to a slave patrol, not only is putting targets on these law enforcement agents' backs, it's just simply, preposterously a lie. And here, one more quick sound bite from her. She had a little more to say. Listen.

And now, with the Supreme Court saying this, it's almost like you can just go grab them up. That is what they're saying. And that is a problem. We all should have a problem with that. But when you don't want to teach American history that includes black history, then you lose out on the benefit of understanding that we have been down this road before and it was not good and we fixed it once and it is a shame that we are re-litigating this and we are going to have to fix it again.

I will tell you. Jasmine Crockett, you are lucky that we are out of time this hour because when you talk about history and comparing ICE to slave patrols, you deserve to be called out, not just from me, but on an issue that most Americans don't want, criminal illegal aliens posing a danger. I'm Griff Jenkins on the great Brian Killmead Show. This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever find yourself playing the budgeting game?

Well, with the name your price tool from Progressive? you can find options that fit your budget and potentially lower your bills. Try it at progressive.com. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Price and coverage match limited by state law.

Not available in all states. From the Fox News Radio Studios in Midtown Manhattan. It's the fastest growing radio talk show. Brian Kilmead. This is the great Brian Kilmead show.

Brian has the day off. It is your humble D.C. correspondent, Griff Jenkins, bringing you the Brian Kilmede Show today from Washington, D.C. in the nation's capital in the Tony Snow Radio Studio. The big giant pinley portrait of Tony there.

And we're remembering Charlie Kirk. We're still grieving and we're angry about what has happened and trying to process why it happened and where we go from here. And we're going to continue to do that. And we will remember not how Charlie died, but how he lived his life and the remarkable once-in-a-generation talent of what he was able to do with that movement in just 31 years. And I often link it back to really parallels I saw between Tony Snow, the guy I knew so well and loved, and his ability to see to a flaw the goodness in other people, the remarkable ability to engage in dialogue, even with those that he disagreed with.

And Charlie Kirk did that, and in the strong, indefatigable faith that. Both Charlie and Tony brought to situations like that to actually, through his faith, love that person on the other side of an argument. And as many times, in fact, most of the times, Charlie and Tony were right, but yet they tolerated and listened and wanted to engage, to connect. And, you know, as we process the part about why this happened, we're fortunate to have joining us Michael Goodwin, an amazing, great columnist, wise man that I am fortunate to call a friend and have interviewed a few times on Fox and Friends. We've got you now on the Brian Killmead Show.

And Michael, thanks for joining us on this Monday as we try and make sense of this. And I want to really drive our listeners and viewers to a piece you've got up about Charlie Kirk's assassination as a result of a decade of anti-Trump rhetoric from the left. That's the title. Tell me why you wrote this and what you think.

Well, good morning, Griff. Thank you. Look, I think that If you you can draw a straight line. All the way back to Donald Trump in twenty fifteen and twenty sixteen And the way that it just the Democrats went crazy Over him. you know, once he's elected, they can't believe it.

I mean, they're They have all the pussy. Yeah. All these demonstrations demonstrations around the country. impeachment. I mean, they denounce him, they won't work with him Uh they wouldn't meet with the President.

Imagine the the leaders of the Democratic Congress would not meet with the President to discuss the tax bill. things like that. Um So they they treated him as though somehow He was illegitimate. And that was from the start. That was what Nancy Pelosi.

I think that's a good question. And then, of course, Russia, Russia, Russia was their way of removing him. I mean, Yeah. this phrase myself, but others have. And I think it's a it's not far from Which is It was a coup.

It was an attempted coup to drive him from office, over the Russia nonsense. which was cooked up By Barack Obama. By Joe Biden. by John Brennan at the CIA. by the FBI and James Comey.

I mean, they created this. And the media, of course, brought broadcast it. as though it was true. And so it took on a life of its own. And I think This attempt to delegitimize Donald Trump.

in that first term. led to this this idea that it It's okay to kill him. And remember that comic uh so-called comic Kathy Griffin with the uh the mass by the seven Head of Donald Trump. Donna out there on a stage saying, I feel like bombing the White House. I mean, imagine if anybody had said that about Barack Obama.

Right, the sky would have fallen, but it became normal. And everything in the media was about his motivations. They somehow have detected a way to read his mind.

so that they ascribe to him the worst possible motivation for everything he says, everything he does, everything he doesn't say, everything he doesn't do. They have figured out the motive in advance. And that I think led directly to These assassination attempts against the president when he was coming back. in 2024. Uh and I think it has spoken.

over.

now. where it's oh Okay to kill conservatives. Murder is over.

Okay, if your cause is just. And there's no cause more just than ridding America of Donald Trump and conservatives. And so that's why I think this trumped arrangement has has grown and expanded to include the health care executive who was assassinated in Midtown Manhattan. You have, of course, the assassination attempts on Trump. I think it's not a coincidence that in at the same time that Charlie Kirk is assassinated, you have the trial.

of a man named Ruth. uh who ch wanted an allegedly tried to assassinate Trump in Florida last year. And he said he did that. because he didn't want voters to re elect him.

So this is not disconnected from politics. It is very much politics by another name for For many on the far left, And I believe you as I say, you can draw a straight line from the time Donald Trump comes down that escalator in twenty fifteen to what happened to Charlie Kirk last week. Yeah, it's such a great point, Michael. You're right. You know, there was a normalization.

Over-the-top hateful rhetoric, but it's not just name-calling, right? It gave a vast swath of the American electorate this genuine belief that if Donald Trump were reelected, it would be the end of civilization, that we would be thrust into a world in which our American democracy of the past 250 years will cease to exist. And we will be, of course, their comparison goes right to Hitler. We're going to be living under Hitler. I remember you, you are jogging, Michael, my memory, and I don't remember the exact quotes, but I remember watching and being stunned on the campaign trail when then President Joe Biden went to Philadelphia and delivered a speech that suggested that the end of democracy would cease to exist, a world of fascism.

AKA Hitler was to come, and he did it with these dark red lights cast up on buildings, which was clearly a staged photo op to make you feel the doom that's going to come. And you know, the Hitler thing now is like almost comical how many Democrats now feel free to use it. It's interesting. I was watching Bill Maher over the weekend. Bill Maher absolutely blasted this stuff, particularly the Hitler stuff after President Trump had just gone to Joe's restaurant here to go out in the public, and he was accosted by protesters.

Here's a little bit of Bill Maher. Here's what he said. Listen. This shit has to stop too. He went out to dinner.

I wouldn't have done that. In Washington, D.C., okay, and people started to gather around him and they were chanting, You're the Hitler of our time.

Okay, first of all, He's not Hitler.

Okay. An insult to everybody in the Holocaust to begin with. Second of all, calling somebody Hitler makes it a lot easier to justify things like assassination. Let's put it on the load of that away. Shall we?

You agree with that? I I do. I think that's well said. That I mean, if somebody really is Hitler, then yeah, let's kill 'em. right?

I mean, let's not have another Holocaust.

So let's stop it. Let's nip it in the bud. And by labeling Trump Hitler. You have put a target on his back. You have legitimized.

that feeling of wanting to kill him. And I think that's what the left has done. I think the New York Times has done it. I think the Washington Post, I think CNN, MSNBC. Everything he does, he's a racist.

It it's author authoritarian, it's Hitleresque. It's all about him. right, that he is so evil And when you say these things over and over, It has this kind of numbing effect That if If you are inclined to agree. Then you have been given the license. And so I think.

One of the things about the Charlie Kirk assassination was was how many people, professionals, doctors, nurses, teachers? even some in the military. Putting out statements saying He had it coming. And it is that same thing that You are on On the side of justice, If you care somebody whom you have labeled his Hitler or evil or something like that. I think there's no way of getting around that that this is connected.

As I say, this is the poison fruit. of ten years of Trump derangement. Syndrome. And it's just, it can never be lost that Charlie Kirk was killed holding a microphone using his words by an individual who used a gun because he disagreed, it appears, with his views. We're learning more about that.

But I do want to quickly shift gears before I run out of time, Michael, because I have been waiting for this moment. The moment that some Democrat gives in to the pressure to endorse Zoron Momdani, the avowed socialist known for his anti-law enforcement views, anti-Semitic views. And likely going to be the next mayor of New York City. I've been waiting for a Democrat that got on board and endorsed. We now know it is New York Governor Kathy Hochl.

The New York Post with a great cover says Comrade Kathy, New York Republican Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, speaking out about this this morning on Fox and Friends. Listen here. It was only a matter of time before she bent the knee for this raging anti-Semite communist. The reality is Kathy Hochl owns Zora Mamdami's position to defund the police, to abolish our law enforcement, to abolish prisons, to abolish private health care insurance, to decriminalize sex workers. It is outrageous.

She also owns every radical proposal, whether it's raising taxes, whether it's government-run grocery stores, and his anti-Semitism. She is the first and only major high-profile Democrat of New York to actually take that step, Hokul, and endorsing Mom Donnie. But I've been waiting, like I said, to see who would do it because I don't see how Chuck Schumer does it, a Jew who wrote a book about exactly the anti-Semitism that exists from people like Mom Donnie.

So I don't know how he does it. Hakeem Jeffries is asked every week at his weekly press conference, excuse me, and he finds a creative way to wiggle out of it. But what do you make of the Hokul endorsement? And do you think other Democrats are going to finally be forced into just getting on board?

Well, I think she's made it. It's easier for them to do that. And I think the argument also along uh against what she did today. was that she's up for re-election next year. Fonic is likely her Republican opponent.

And Hochl did not want to be burdened by Mom Doni's position. on higher taxes, for example. Grocery. just recently. She said, I'm opposed.

To his idea for government-run grocery stores. I'm a free market capitalist, she said. said of her of herself.

Now how do you square those two. You don't. She has made a decision. And I think that it's a purely political decision. And it is that running for governor of New York, Any Democrat needs a very large term.

out in New York City. to win. Hoco would have been defeated. Uh Lee Zeldon in 2022 were it not for for a late minute big turnout in New York City. Where she got roughly 70% of the vote, Zelding got 30% and it was a fairly large vote.

Zeldon would have won because he will win. Yeah. Republican candidate. In Zeldin's case, it could be Stefanic, will win. Most of the county outside New York City.

Yeah. Um maybe of the I think there's something like sixty two counties and a Republican will probably win fifty or or something like that in most races.

So it is the city Yeah. the bulk of the vote. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And so that's why I think Hocho. She feels Mamdani is going to be the mayor apparently now.

If he should lose, Then she's in trouble. she's in more trouble. This is the idea of rationalizing things that he has said. Yeah. And Michael, I've got to leave it there.

We're just up against a hard break. Thank you so much for joining us. This is Griff Jenkins on the Brian Killmeat Show. It's Brian Kilmeid. This episode is brought to you by LifeLock.

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Visit lifelock.com/slash podcast for 40% off. Terms apply. The more you listen, the more you'll know it's Brian Kilmead. The father informed us pursuant to an interview of him. That he looked at the video that we released that evening and the enhanced photos and identified the suspect.

His family has collectively told investigators that he subscribed to left-wing ideology and even more so in these last couple of years. And he had a text message exchange, he, the suspect, with another individual, in which he claimed that he had an opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and he was going to do it. because of his hatred for what Charlie stood for. That was FBI Director Cash Patel on Fox and Friends this morning, giving us more detail into the shooting of Charlie Kirk and perhaps the motive, what it looks like a political motivation from the assassin. This is Griff Jenkins filling in on the Brian Kilmead show as we continue to unpack this.

And as you just heard in the last segment, author and columnist Michael Goodwin really drawing this line in a column saying that Charlie Kirk's assassination is a result of a decade of anti-Trump rhetoric. From the left. And here you have the FBI director Cash Patel talking about that leftist ideology. And here is this assassin apparently grows up in a middle-class, happy Utah life out there. And somehow, I guess the best word for it is may have been radicalized.

And that's some of the details we're learning a little more about it. And I thought that Director Patel also had a pretty significant soundbite there in that interview on Fox and Friends, where he talked about this note from the suspect written prior to the shooting. Listen here. The suspect wrote a note saying, I have the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I'm going to take it. That note was written before the shooting.

Evidence of its existence, we now have learned, existed before the shooting, was in the location in the suspect and partner's home. But we have since learned that the note, even though it has been destroyed, we have found forensic evidence of the note and we have confirmed what that note says. Frightening and chilling. To consider and to think about. You know, I saw a political cartoon over the weekend that just was heartbreaking and also terrifying at this watershed moment that we're in in the country.

And it was four boxes that showed students in a classroom and a professor pointing up on the board with some of this leftist ideology. Then you see the politicians saying it. Then you see the media on the TV the same person is saying those things. And then the fourth box is just a lone person with red evil in their eyes. And you wonder, does this radicalization truly lead to these tragic sort of events?

This is Griff Jenkins filling in on the Brian Kilmead Show. We'll be right back. If you're interested in it, Brian's talking about it. You're with Brian Kilmead. This is the great Brian Kilmead show.

Your humble DC correspondent Griff Jenkins filling in for Brian today. And I want to take a moment to highlight something that means something to me. And that is the President's announcement on Fox and Friends on Friday that the next crime crackdown. I live in Washington. I've seen the crackdown.

But you know what? I was born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee. A town that I love, A town known down there on the Delta, not just for Elvis Presley and B.B. King and Barbecue and the Blues and the Charm, but for that city's grit. And I have watched for decades the crime, which didn't exist remotely to the level it does now in that great little city.

That it does, the crime is completely out of control.

So many of my high school and childhood friends have texted me over the years, particularly in the past few years, at just how out of control crime is. Mother of a that I went to high school with her son shot in broad daylight and killed another mother that I knew in high school followed home from the grocery store and sexually assaulted in her living room the stories are so common that it's shocking and so when I heard that news that the president is going into Memphis to shut it down I was relieved and happy for so many of the residents and family I still have family there that that something's going to be done because something's got to change here was that announcement on Friday listen Memphis is that's the next city deeply troubled And the mayor is happy, he's a Democrat mayor, the mayor is happy. and the governor, Tennessee. The governor's happy. You know, and that's interesting because one of the things that may not exactly be true is about that mayor, whether the mayor is on board, Mayor Paul Young.

Now I've I've I've started already to talk to some law enforcement sources. And they tell me that while that significant announcement came on Friday from the president, that the FBI, the federal law enforcement folks have already been on the ground in Memphis doing a little bit of work. Clearly, obviously, it's going to increase. And these sources tell me, actually, that the Democrat mayor Paul Young is actually on board and welcoming the cooperation. But yet, maybe some of his comments publicly are taking a different role.

Listen to this when Paul Young was on CNN talking about the National Guard coming in, he resisting that. Cut 18. I'm certainly not happy about the National Guard. I am looking forward to trying to find ways to invest in the things that we're already doing to address crime in our city. Do you not want the National Guard in Memphis?

I mean, are you saying clearly, I don't want them here? Yeah, I mean, I think that statement has been clear. But at the end of the day, my goal is to make sure that. If they are coming here, which we now know they are, that we are able to drive how they engage in our city.

So he is he's walking a fine line. He's walking a fine line, and he was also asked in that interview about confirmation of it coming, and he tried to thread the needle. Listen here a little bit more, cut 19. Yeah, I learned uh earlier this week that it was under consideration, I think Monday afternoon. I got a call from the governor's office and they informed me of the dialogue that was underway.

Did you have hard confirmation before the President announced it on the morning show yesterday? No, that w that that was the confirmation. But yet I can tell you from just my sources, and my sources are strong, that there's actually already been some federal law enforcement engagement, putting what they call viper teams in there to go after the criminals. You know, there was a headline in Memphis going back a year or so ago, in the wake of the Tyree Nichols incident, that Records showed that in Memphis is it a perfect small example that one eleven year old Memphian. 11.

That's a child. Eleven year old Memphian arrested nine times in just over two months for charges including carjacking, theft, burglary, and robbery, to name a few. Eleven years old, carjacking. Burglary Robbery. That when when that's happening, when a when a Eleven-year-old is racking up serious violent criminal charges.

by the dozens, you say Across all political lines, you've got to do something. That's why I think that this mayor, the verdict's not out. yet on this mayor. He, of course, like Mayor Murrow Bowser here, has had to say something about the politics of seeing troops on the streets as any local politician would have to sort of assume that many of the residents might be a little bit intimidated by that at first. But the goal of cracking down on a crime, violent crime problem that has spiraled out of control and is metastasizing and destroying great cities like Memphis, it's hard to imagine how you don't get on board.

But yet, There are Democrats that are doubling down. We saw this in LA. We saw this in Chicago. We saw this in Boston. And now you've got people like Austin Pearson, a Tennessee state rep Democrat, that is blasting this.

Listen to this. Cut twenty. This is the playbook for the abuse of power and the building up of an authoritarian regime led by a white supremacist president in an effort to become the wannabe dictator that he's always articulated that he wanted to be. And it's particularly obvious that black cities and black-led cities or black majority cities are the main targets by this administration. But what they are trying to do and what we need to be so eyes wide open about is they're trying to take over the military to be used for political purposes.

And so we do not want them here in Memphis, in Shelby County. What we do want is federal intervention financially. We do not want military occupation.

Now, I don't know whether Representative Pearson served in the military or not, but to suggest that this is military occupation is absurd. And, you know, he is not alone in Democrats that are rallying around. Trying to frame this in a political context to hurt the Trump administration. Steve Cohen, state representative, former national representative, I believe, saying that Memphis is being targeted specifically. Listen to this: Cut 22.

The national establishment has always kind of thought of Memphis as being part of Mississippi. which might be a nice way of saying it's a black city and we don't care about it. They've made disparaging remarks about Memphis for years. The governor went along with it. The mayor's not for it.

Having the National Guard here is unnecessary, and it is a stunt. It's just a Trump show. To show his power and his force. It's just like that picture that we see when we go to the embassies around the world, and it's Trump looking at you in a mean way with a scowl. And that's what he wants to be known as.

A stunt is a very good thing. It's remarkable to hear the Democrat criticism, not of, you know, well, we want better cooperation with the feds because we have an issue with this thing or that thing, or we want that we want to get to the Common goal of making streets in Memphis safer in the bluff city, but yet to call it a stunt. is Really jaw-dropping because here is, you know, as a resident of.

Now, Washington, D.C., for more than 30 years, that was mugged at gunpoint. And Rob just Feet from my front door in Georgetown, the tony expensive little neighborhood there. I lived in the same tiny little row house my wife and I bought 20 almost seven years ago when we got married on Cinco de Maya in 2003. Fortunately, nobody hurt. Robbed a gunpoint.

We caught the guy. But just a few months ago, my car got broken into and I didn't even call the police because they didn't really take anything. There wasn't any damage. They didn't get a broken window. And life goes on.

And when the crackdown in DC came, I was Remarkable how eye-opening it was for me to think, wow, all this sudden, I'm talking about other residents and neighbors. We didn't really ever think like it could be different. That all of this sudden the president decided to make a priority to make the nation's capital safer. And so now you look about cities like Memphis, which I would argue with you has been forgotten about. There are so many of those same friends I told you that have been victims of crimes that I grew up with as children in high school, in college, that have been victims of crime.

I can tell you a great number of them made the Eastern Trek.

So many of my friends in Memphis moved to Nashville because Nashville's government and Nashville's city leaders have done a much better job of raising up. And, you know, the economy and everything else is going great in Nashville. Memphis is suffering because of local leadership, because of leaders. Which has been overwhelmingly, if not wholeheartedly, all Democrat leadership. And yet, here we go with the president trying to come in to make a city safer, to restore it to its glory.

But yet, you're getting political pushback for what? For what? And I would say that is for the sake of peace. Pure, raw, selfish politics, how you don't accept some help. Have you looked at how much crime is down in DC?

There's a playbook. It can work in Memphis. It would be one thing, perhaps, to make the criticism if Memphis came out of nowhere and was targeted. And if my sources are right, That Memphis has already had Viper teams, and there has already been a reduction in crime. It's only about to amp up, then these politicians darn well know that there's already been a reduction in crime.

Streets already made safer. You've got, you know. Residents that are Are welcoming this across political lines because safety in communities isn't a political issue? It's not even a partisan argument. We want to be safe.

We don't want to be carjacked. We don't want burglary. We don't want to be robbed. We don't want violence. We don't want to be assaulted.

But yet, here you see, in just like LA, Chicago, and Boston, in Memphis, now it looks like Democrats are going to double down on an issue I would tell you is not 80-20 or 90-10. It's 99 to 1 when it comes to people that want some safety. In Chicago, they said the same thing: that it wasn't wanted, that it was a stunt. Those were the exact words we heard from Chicago's Mayor Johnson, from Governor Pritzker. Fortunately, in this case, it's different because Tennessee's governor is very much behind this, and U.S.

Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn is a big driver as well.

So there's a bit of a divide there. But to say that it's unwanted and unnecessary and a stunt, ask the hundreds of Mm. Families, grieving family members and friends of the 270-something that have been killed in Chicago this year. That's why I think Memphis is about to become a really, really big city. And I'll leave you with one last quote: this is yet another Tennessee State rep, London Lamar.

Who wants to talk about stats, not realities on the ground? Listen to this: cut 23. And we are at a 25-year low when it comes to murders, a six-year low when it comes to robberies.

So we are making good progress when it comes to creating a safer community. See, the problem with this is if the Trump administration, Republicans, truly cared about making communities safe, they will give us back the $800 million in crime prevention grants that the Trump administration cut in April. Did it occur to her that those crime prevention grants were not leading to results? And it drives me insane to listen to politicians talk about stats. People don't feel stats.

Stats aren't on the streets. Stats don't carjack people. The fact that people, and we just saw it here in DC, I did a lot of coverage of it. We played cuts when I was hosting, I believe, the last time of a woman who, literally her husband, was killed, stabbed to death, trying to intervene when an elderly man was being robbed. Her son, also, a paraplegic today, shot some nine times in random violence.

And she is the furthest from a conservative Republican that supported Trump, but yet she welcomed what's happening in Washington because why wouldn't she? And yet, when city leaders now in Memphis and in Tennessee are touting crime stats are fine, it literally makes it look Like they are defending their crime. in and of itself. In For the life of me, I'm just stunned. We somehow got to that point politically.

I'm Griff Jenkins, ranting and rambling and stunned by what's happening, but looking forward to what's about to happen in Memphis on this crime crackdown. Filling in on the great Brian Kilmead show. We've got a whole lot more when we come back. Politics, current events, and news that affects you. Brian's got a lot more to say.

Stay with Brian Kilmead. It's the Will Kane Show. Watch it live at noon Eastern, Monday through Thursday on FoxNews.com or on the Fox News YouTube channel. And don't miss a show. Get the podcast five days a week at FoxNewsPodcasts.com or wherever you download your favorite podcasts.

Radio that makes you think. This is the Brian Kill Me Show. It makes you think in every way, every day. This is your humble D.C. correspondent Griff Jenkins filling in for the great Brian Kilmead on the Brian Kilmead show.

Hey, by the way, did you happen to catch the moving tribute last night on the Emmys? I don't really tune into those award shows, but you know, I like to watch the. I just assumed, you know, with the NFL and the major league tributes to Charlie, I wanted to see what moment of silence and way that they would honor Charlie Kirk on the Emmys last night. Oh, oh, wait. It didn't happen.

It was Absent entirely, not a single person speaking out about Charlie Kirk. No moment of silence. They completely ignored one of the most. Unbelievable tragedies in our history in a week in which the country is trying to find a way to process this. People on both sides, Democrats, Republicans, conservatives, liberals, progressives, MAGA, all trying to figure out what this means, where we go from here, and yet the Emmys, the stars of Hollywood, choosing to entirely Ignore it.

Not a word. But yet Some of Hollywood's finest, including Hannah Einbender, who won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy for a show called Hacks. Hadn't seen it, not sure about that, but she chose to get political, just avoid Charlie Kirk. Listen here, cut 32. I just want to say.

Finally, Go Bird. Yeah. Peace and free Palestine. Thank you. Free Palestine So so And by the way, that bleep was the F word to ice.

So attacking ice. Free Palestine. That was the message that Hollywood wanted to send. And you wonder, I mean, we have seen, to be fair, a number of Hollywood folks that have said positive things in the wake of this, but the award show knew they had a platform, they had an opportunity. To bring people together to work through what the nation's going through, and they chose to ignore it.

Stephen Colbert, by the way, was saying, Hey, by the way, if anyone's hiring, I got it in me now. We'll see if that happens. This is Griff Jenkins on the great Brian Kilmead show. What a Monday. Listen to the all-new Brett Baer podcast, featuring common ground, in-depth talks with lawmakers from opposite sides of the aisle, along with all your Brett Baer favorites like his all-star panel and much more.

Available now at FoxnewsPodcasts.com or wherever you get your podcasts. From High Atoff Fox News headquarters in New York City. Always seeking solutions, never sowing division. It's Brian Kilmead. Not coming from Midtown Manhattan today, friends, coming from Washington, the Fox headquarters in the Tony Snow studio.

This is your humble DC correspondent, Griff Jenkins, filling in for the great Brian Kilmead.

So much to talk about in the Tony Snow show, though, to be asked. To come in and fill in for Brian today really hits home because, as I have sort of been doing throughout the morning, reflecting on the similarities between Tony Snow and Charlie Kirk, they're putting faith first, unapologetic about their faith, but more so also being someone that truly was a happy warrior that wanted to engage, not really have the hatred and the rhetoric, but to debate, to engage. And nobody did it better than Tony and Charlie as we process where we go. But yet, in these moments where we find the country grappling and trying to process things, news does continue. And the president is not only going to go out to Arizona to the tribute for Charlie Kirk this weekend, but he's also about to take a major overseas trip to the UK and elsewhere.

And that's going to be a significant trip because the stakes on the global stage. Can never be higher.

So we decided to reach out to someone who covers all of this and knows it better than anyone, my friend and colleague, Lucas Tomlinson. And Lucas, I actually want to point out to our listeners: you are coming on on your day off to join us, which I appreciate so much. It's actually my day off, but when they asked me to do Brian Killing You, I said, you bet. I'll put everything aside to do it.

So we're going to screw up your day off as well, just for a brief moment. Thanks for joining me, man. What do you make of this major trip that the president's about to take? Uh griff. Thanks for having me.

Of course, duty calls. And speaking of faith, I'm actually sitting in a car across the street from my children's classical Christian school, and you're saving me from moving some desks and chairs and some other heavy boxes.

So this is actually a little bit of a reprieve. Although I'm getting a lot of people. Where are you?

So I was like, cannot wait to join you. But speaking of the the state visit for President Trump going to Britain to to meet King Charles at Windsor Castle, it is worth noting this is unprecedented. No U.S. president has ever been invited to Britain for a second state visit by a British monarch. Recall, this invitation was graciously extended.

From Britain's Prime Minister, Kier Starmer, in the Oval Office back in February. You remember the envelope? I'm sure our listeners do. He whips out the envelope, he says, this is from King Charles. The president said, you know, do you mind if I read it?

He opens it up. He didn't open his mouth right away. He just he read it, let it soak in, and I think marveled over the signature. It was a pretty incredible moment.

So the president and the first lady are embarking probably sometime tomorrow to go to the UK to meet King Charles. It's notable that monarchs traditionally do state visits. Politics is not at the top of the agenda, of course. The king does not hold a a political office, of course, sitting on top of the monarchy. But you can't help but think.

Russia's war in Ukraine will not come up in some capacity. It's just because since the Alaska summit, we've seen the Russians ramp up their strikes on Ukraine. We've seen drone attacks, some numbering over 800, striking Ukraine. And as we saw last week, dozens flying over the skies of a NATO ally Poland over the weekend, in case people are busy watching football on Fox, of course. Russian drone flew over Romania.

Another NATO ally. This one crashed harmlessly, but the Romanians scrambled a pair of F sixteen, a pair of Vipers to investigate. Uh is certainly concerning. And what's really concerning with folks in the administration and the Pentagon is you you have China helping out Russia crank out these drones. You can hear about these these drone attacks increasing increasing number.

That's because the Chinese are helping with their supply chain management gurus, cranking these out. Of course, the body style is designed from an Iranian Shahid drone. And it it's concerning because the problem is not decreasing, it is increasing Griff. It's not going away. It sure is.

And it's been fascinating watching President Trump on the global stage try and navigate this because he has spoken about just how much Zelensky and Putin really truly hate each other. He likes to point out that he's solved half a dozen wars already. This one is really difficult. In fact, I think we've got a little bit of the sound of Trump on the tarmac in Morristown, New Jersey this weekend talking about specifically that. Listen here, cut 26.

The hatred between Zelensky and Putin is unfathomable. I don't know. I think I'm going to have to do all the talking. They hate each other. We're going to get it worked out one way or the other, but relatively soon.

They hate each other so much, they can't breathe.

So I'm gonna have to get Yeah. And as you point out so eloquently, Lucas, look at the aggression of Putin ramping up in that region with the drones over Poland, now Romania as well. It's going to be interesting to see sort of how that develops this week with that trip. There's no question. And I don't think anybody would disagree with what the President just said there.

You have two countries. that have been at war now for over three years. The war isn't stopping. Russia continues to make incremental gains at a very high cost. There's no question.

They've suffered a million casualties over the last three plus years.

However, Russia's got a deep bench. They keep throwing soldiers into this meat grinder, and Ukrainians just can't afford to keep losing soldiers to stop these advances. There's been a lot of calls from the Trump administration for Europe. uh to ramp up it's it's Its armaments and to build more weapons. You know, one of the problems is when you think about the war being ended, and how does this supposed peacekeeping force arrive in Ukraine that was discussed at the the NATO summit and excuse me, at the the summit in Alaska between Trump and Putin.

Who are these peacekeepers? A lot of the European countries, the people aren't supporting this. Where President Trump is going this week to Britain, the British Army, Griff, is only about 37,000 strong active duty, the regular forces, regular personnel as they call them there. A lot of these militaries are been cut so vastly over the last decades They just don't have the troops. And frankly, the armaments to give.

Promises, we see the train rides in the Kyiv, we see the warm tweets, we hear strong statements. When it comes to hard power, it's really been lacking from the Europeans. Uh whereas the Russians They're cranking out three times more weapons uh in in in just a few months than all of NATO cranks down an entire year. That comes from the NATO general general secretary. You know, they are cranking out artillery rounds, they're making these drones, they're getting help from China, they're getting help from North Korea in terms of weaponry and personnel.

And of course, Iran.

So you have this entire Axis. If people think this is just about Russia and Ukraine, Got to look a little deeper at this battle. This is really about this new axis versus the West. And the Trump administration wants to ramp up its forces in the Pacific, however, you know. According to The Economist, the U.S., it'll take seven years To produce the weapons that we've given to Ukraine.

So, what the Trump administration is calling for is for Europe to step up to produce more weapons. But there's a lot of critics who think this needs to be happening more at home in the United States. For all the calls for the Europeans to ramp up defense spending to 5% of their respective economies, in the United States it's only about 3%. Let's compare that to the big Reagan buildup. That was 6% of GDP.

Even at the low point of Jimmy Carter's presidency in the 70s, nobody would call him a hawk. The United States was spending about 4.5% of our economy on defense.

So there are some calls. of the more hawkish wings of the Republican Party for increased defense spending. Because for all the people on the left that want to see the Trump administration want to do more with Ukraine, are they calling for an increase in defense spending? That's what some of the critics are talking about. If you want to help Ukraine, if you want to do more, got to make more weapons, you got to make more jets, you've got to make more warships to build up American forces before you can give the kind of help that some people want to see.

And we have heard President Trump talking about building more ships, but it's such a great point. If our listeners were just listening, Lucas, who he and I share our offices are next to each other, and we often talk about this, the U. S. is not where we need to be. And we have got a lot of catching up to do, as you point out so accurately right there.

And you also, you know, put it in the great context. This is why you are a great reporter, Lucas, so that people can understand the context of things. It's not just Russia, it's that access. And that access is Russia, China, and of course, Iran, which is behind. Go ahead.

That's right. And we saw it on display when President Xi. Vladimir Putin. He hosted Kim Jong-un. We have never seen the leaders of China, Russia, and North Korea together at the same time.

That was not a coincidence that happened in just the days and weeks after the Alaska summit and after we saw more limo diplomacy there with Putin getting in the car with the Indian Prime Minister Modi and then with Kim Jong-un. There is a real axis. This is a lot bigger than Russia versus Ukraine. And what you're seeing with the Ukrainians is a group of people. We both covered the war griff.

You saw people, we spoke to them every day, who are yearning to be part of the West. If NATO's out of the question, they want to join the European Union. You know, there's European countries like Austria who aren't in NATO, but they're members of the European Union. That's where their minds are, that's where their heart is. You now have a million Ukrainians under arms.

What you don't want. Is Russia to take over Ukraine, have a million Ukrainians under arms fighting for Russia? You don't want that kind of reunification of the USSR and all the weapons. It could be worse than Afghanistan post-withdrawal under the Biden administration. Salient point indeed, and no doubt Putin is being quite transparent.

And also, we can kind of fold into this trip just another issue, obviously, the war in Gaza and the president wanting to end that. Secretary of State Rubio oversees now in Jerusalem, our colleague Jillian Turner, getting an exclusive access, I believe, to him and getting to talk to him. She's asking him about whether or not Israel may consider annexing the West Bank. That's a piece on the chessboard here, so to speak. But what's interesting is the president's going to have to deal with the fact that you keep having European and British leaders recognizing a Palestinian state.

That I think is going to factor in as well. Yeah, but the United Nations, they just held a vote a few days ago before we went to the weekend. It was It was uh like over a hundred countries wanted uh recognition with Palestinian state, just about seven or so, uh the United States, of course, Israel being among them, uh disagreeing with that. Of course, we got the UN General Assembly coming up. Uh the Secretary Rubio's trip comes in the heels of that massive Israeli strike in Qatar targeting Hamas leaders.

That's never happened before. Uh it does not appear the strike was successful. Hamas leaders uh were were not there. Uh however, it was notable when uh Israel's ambassador to the United States came on special report and told Brett that uh If they're not successful, they're going to try it again. And there's a reason.

I was in New York last weekend, around Friday, and the president hosted the Prime Minister of Qatar.

So while the president has He's also trying to end not just Russia-Ukraine, but also the war in Gaza. The president, we heard from Secretary Rubio yesterday, he wants all the hostages, all twenty living and the dozens deceased. Out at once. He does not want to see this drag on and on and all. A very tall order, of course, Griff.

You know, if you're a Hamas, you know, sadly, that that's some of the only currency they have. These hostages are now, you know, coming up on year two here in just a few days, really. And it That is why Rubio went. He's trying to balance out Um the US relationship with the Qataris. You heard Mark Levin last night uh on the way home, as I did last night from New Jersey, uh was hammering uh the Tories for all the the the support of terrorism s and all the the billions they spend on American universities here.

However, it's also the home of the largest US military base in the Middle East.

So I think that sentence right there just shows you the the complexities in the region. But y President Trump has been adamant. He wants to see this war end, as I think most of the world does as well. And he wants to see the Israelis successful. He wants to see those hostages come home.

And that's what we heard from Secretary Rubio talking to reporters at English before getting on that plane with our own Jillian Turner.

Well, you did a remarkable job of that reporting from New York. And so, just in the last 30 seconds I've got, since we often talk a little bit of Washington Commanders, you obviously, before you started that reporting, you probably got up there Thursday night and had to watch with dismay the Packers destroy the Commanders. Are we in trouble? You know, we're not in trouble. I don't want to be this guy, but if you don't mind, I'm a no-excuse guy, but I'm just going to throw one in there.

These Thursday night games are tough. You get a day of practice. I understand that the other team has to do it too. We're the ones that had to travel, get on the plane. Want to see a healthy Jaden Daniels?

He got banged up in that game. Still waiting on a press conference with Dan Quinn this afternoon. Not sure we're going to cover that out in Ashburn, Virginia today. But how about, by the way, in sports news and White House news, President Trump Thursday night goes in the clubhouse at Yankees Stadium, shakes Aaron Judge's hand. Minutes later, Judge hits two home runs.

The Yankees won three straight after Trump visited the clubhouse. They just lost the Red Sox yesterday, but they get paid too, right? Sweeping the Red Sox, the divisional rival's tough. And by the way, after meeting Trump, Aaron Judge Knoxo's two homers, tying Joe DiMaggio for fourth most all home runs on Yankees.

So amazing stuff. We're out of time. Lucas, as always, thank you for taking it. Yeah. And thank you for joining us and taking time on your day off.

As always, great stuff, great reporting. Thank you. Lucas Tomlinson there with us. I'm Griff Jenkins, filling in on the Brian Kilney Show. We got a whole lot more coming up.

Don't go anywhere. And Kill Me will be right back. It's Will Kane Country. Watch it live at noon Eastern Monday through Thursday at Foxnews.com or on the Fox News YouTube channel. And don't miss the show.

Listen and follow the podcast five days a week at FoxnewsPodcasts.com or wherever you download your favorite podcasts. Breaking news, unique opinions. Hear it all on the Brian Kill Me Show. If it's news you want, it is news you shall get here on the great Brian Kilmead show. This is your humble D.C.

correspondent, Griff Jenkins, filling in on this Monday in the news there with our my colleague, correspondent Lucas Tomlinson, talking. He was just in New York with President Trump covering the Issues of the day, which obviously a big one is the Middle East and what's happening there. And this significant trip by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who we saw just yesterday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praying together at the Western Wall, it really brought home, you know, at least when I'm seeing those images, I'm looking at, you know, the power of the U.S., the American-Israeli alliance. It's the strongest of the U.S.'s alliances and such a critical one in the middle of it. But yet, Rubio traveling there at a time when Prime Minister Netanyahu shocked all of us with that surprising strike on Hamas inside Doha, the capital of Qatar.

My colleague Julian Turner getting an exclusive interview with Secretary Rubio asking about the fact that Rubio will go to Qatar. As well, right after Israel bombs it, here is a little bit of that. Listen. Are you concerned, Mr. Secretary, that by traveling to Doha while they are holding these meetings?

Um The Prime Minister here is going to feel Not snubbed because you just met with him, but feel sort of. Our relationship with Israel is not going to be affected by any of this. We're going to continue to be strong allies and partners. The President, as he president said, he wasn't happy with the way things went down. That doesn't mean we're going to stop being their partner and their ally.

But our message, both here in Jerusalem and also in Doha, will be what it's been consistently, and that is. despite we're not diminishing it we're not asking you to ignore it And you're going to get a whole lot more news out of that. Jillian Turner's exclusive interview talking about everything from the trip to Qatar, along with obviously, as Lucas and I were talking about what to do about Russia and Ukraine. Secretary Rubio in the center of that. A lot more coming up on the Brian Kilmead show.

I'm Griff Jenkins. Don't go anywhere. This is Jimmy Phale, inviting you to join me for Fox Across America, where we'll discuss every single one of the Democrats' dumb ideas. Just kidding, it's only a three-hour show. Listen live at Noon Eastern or get the podcast at foxacrossamerica.com.

The fastest three hours in radio. You're with Brown. Ryan Killmead. Giddy up. It is the fastest three hours, but the best three hours.

The Brian Killmead Show. Indeed, this is your humble DC correspondent, Griff Jenkins, filling in for Brian on this Monday, where we are finding out what the news of the world is, but we're also still processing and trying to understand why this tragic shooting occurred that claimed the life of such an amazing young individual, just 31, Charlie Kirk, and where the country goes from here. Is this a watershed moment for our politics, for our politicians? For Our parents, as we look at how influenced the alleged shooter may have been in the digital space. And that is why we were fortunate to have Tom Kirsting coming on now, wrote a book about this stuff, knows it better than anybody.

Tom, thank you for joining us. Thanks, Griff. Appreciate it. Hey, so Tom, let's drill in. You know, I figured, I'm so excited that we could bring you on today because I think there is, while there are so many things to consider and process, one of them that really stands out is whether or not, you know, these cell phones, whether the digital world played a role in what's being described, characterized possibly as radicalizing this otherwise previously sort of normal Utah middle-class kid growing up.

And, you know, the governor, Spencer Cox, talked a little bit over the weekend about this and the digital connection. I want to listen, I want you to listen to this soundbite and get your reaction. Cut three, guys. Went to my alma mater, Utah State University, but was only there for a very short amount of time. I dropped out after less than one semester.

And it seemed to happen kind of after that, after he had moved back to. To the southern part of Utah. Clearly, there was a lot of gaming going on. Friends that have confirmed that there was kind of that deep, dark internet, the Reddit culture, and these other dark places of the internet where this person was going deep. And you saw that on the casings.

I think I didn't have any idea what those inscriptions, many of those inscriptions even meant, but they are, you know, certainly the memeification that is happening in our society today. Hey Tom, what do you make of all this? You see a digital connection?

Well, no doubt about it. I mean, I refer to these devices as the modern-day weapons of mass destruction.

Something, yes, I wrote a book. The first edition of my book, Disconnected, came out in 2016. Second edition 2020. My most recent book is called Raising Healthy Teenagers.

So I've been lecturing to parents, schools, organizations, Since 2009, about the mental health impact that these devices are having on our nation's youth. And in my recent book, what I started seeing post-COVID. is a lot more oppositional defiant behavior. Let me explain what that is, Graf.

So OD it's called ODD, oppositional defiant disorder. And what that is, is younger kids, they could be 11, 12, 13. that are absolutely defiant and oppositional to an authority figure. usually the parent. And I'm talking about getting physical with mom and dad, spitting at them, and all of it is consistent with the messaging that they're receiving.

Kids today spend eight or nine hours a day. The majority of their waking hours immersed in this deep, dark place. And it's definitely going to shape their thoughts and definitely shape their emotions. And you take, you know, this Tyler Robinson. No, we know that he was in a deep, dark web, got sucked into that.

His brain normalized that, no question about that. I firmly believe that. And you throw on top of it, I believe he has a roommate or something that's a transgender person, right? And Charlie Hurd, you know, he's going to say he's anti-this. He said he wasn't really anti-anything, he was just trying to get people to think.

But the people on that side automatically think that if you don't try to normalize something and celebrate it, then you're anti it.

So I think this sort of created the perfect time bomb and the perfect storm, just like all the other things we're seeing now. It's frightening, Tom, to think about, honestly, because you wonder, you know, if this happened with this individual, it could happen in any household. You know, I will say, I'm the father of two daughters that are now 24 and 19. They went through the, right when you're writing this book, and unfortunately, knock on wood, I haven't seen really negative effects of the. Them in this oppositional defiant behavior, but but I did see what is and continues to be an unhealthy addiction to it.

And so, when you talk about this young guy that gets sort of radicalized, you put it exactly right. He was normalized, and we know from going in these kids can get to darker places than you and I normally do because we aren't the generation that grew up with these things. And so, when they get there, it holds the worst of our angels, the worst version of ourselves is screaming at 11 out of 10 level the horrific things out there. We had a guest on Andrew Colvett, who is Charlie Kirk's radio producer, had him on the show today, and he was talking about how he hated that the portrayal of Charlie only was the 10 seconds. Of someone on these very websites in these dark places clipped and took him out of context.

And that 90% of his interactions were purposeful and kind and trying to engage in the differences. And you're right.

So I think it's worth at this moment to have someone of your knowledge and expertise. What do parents, and not necessarily ones like me whose kids are just a little bit out of the teens, but the ones that are on that 10, 11, 12, about to basically go off that digital cliff, and parents are going to learn, whether we're being honest or not, parents are going to learn even the best intentions are lost and failed in trying to get the young people to separate from the digital dependency. Yeah, so when I'm doing these lectures, Griff, I'll give you an example.

So I'll get to a point in my lecture, and if I'm speaking to a parent group, let's say there's like 300 people, I'll say, raise your hand. If you think it's smart for an 11-year-old to have a smartphone.

So never in the countless lectures that I've done have as a parent ever raised their hand. Then I go on to say, all right, so we could all agree it's a bad idea for an 11-year-old to have a smartphone. Yeah. Then I share, then I drop the bomb on them. And I'm not trying to put anybody on the spot.

And I say, well, the average age of first smartphone issuance is 10.3 years old.

So, even though all of us in this room agree it's a terrible idea, the majority of us in this room, our children at that age, have them.

So why is that? It's called social conformity. And that's how human beings operate. Just like the school of fish or the birds that all move at the same time, we tend to do that as well. It's not always a bad thing.

So what I talk about, I created something in disconnected. A new healthier social conformity. And I call it the phone-free s um The uh phone-free school pledge. And what that is, it's pretty simple.

So we've got to start somewhere.

So imagine you're a parent. of a child going into kindergarten in first grade. Your child doesn't have a phone then, the majority, okay? And then you get that packet. You know, from the school with all the forms you need to fill out.

And right in there is a form that says, I agree not to purchase a smartphone for my child until late adolescence. I'm betting, and I've had schools that are already doing this. That any parent that sees that of a child that age is going to look at that and be like, yeah, duh, of course. And then hopefully talk to other people in the school, other parents, and then everybody. kind of comes on board with that.

And then we create a new healthier You know, social conformity, where imagine our children going right into middle school and possibly high school and not having smartphones. And we've created that sort of collective consciousness now at a grassroots roots level, school to school. This is the way out of it. It's got to start somewhere. But like I said, that's how we are.

We just tend to. you know, kind of cross our fingers as parents and roll the dice and say, I hope it doesn't happen to my kid. Yeah, it's such a great point, Tom. And you're right.

I mean, listen, as parents, too, the pressure for the social conformity is really insurmountable. And, you know, parents can make convenient excuses for themselves, like, well, at the end of the day, I want to make sure that my child has a phone in case there's an emergency. But, you know, somehow for centuries, parents got along and their children were okay without these things. And, you know, I just worry where it all goes. In fact, let's bring this up a little bit.

I don't know if you have thoughts, and it's kind of developing this morning, but it appears there may be some sort of deal for TikTok. And, you know, I remember covering Republicans when they were vehemently against TikTok, not just because of the Chinese connection and the Chinese controlling this algorithm, but obviously because. Of the algorithms themselves. And to the very point that you raise, which is, you know, with these algorithms on places like TikTok and elsewhere, you know, they know that the reaction is greater when it's rage. There's cute kittens, bunnies bouncing on a trampoline.

And the makers of these algorithms see, oh, that's nice. It's getting a little engagement, a little activity. But then when it's rage, it really drives people. And so, you know, I don't know how I feel about this TikTok, which is it looks like there could be a deal. It looks like, you know, the president has leaned into TikTok.

It obviously helped him in the election. Yeah, I just saw a headline about that. I think this is his like third go-round or whatever, like sort of a threat. And I think he said by September 17th, something's gotta happen. And you gotta remember, too, like, China.

That's where it comes from. The content that people see in China is much different than what they see here. Right, so like these kids, to your point. The algorithms are super fast. There was a story two years ago.

This is fascinating, very relatable. Two years ago, two, three years ago, where there were hundreds of teenage girls in the United States. that developed motor tics, like somebody that has Tourette syndrome. And they went to their doctors, and the doctors had never seen this before. And then, after not, and none of them had Tourette's, so doctors collaborated in the United States and Europe to figure out what the cause was.

And the cause was that each of these girls We're consuming countless hours of TikTok videos of people with Tourette syndrome. It was trending.

So think about the brain and how malleable this mind is. Just from watching that. All this over and over again. The brain is sending physiological signals to the body. Creating involuntary ticks.

Now, imagine consuming nothing but violence and anger all day long. Think about what that's doing. It's a remarkable point, and I did not know about that study. That's fascinating. Broadening it a little bit, opening the lens, I do worry about how.

children's brains are affected by emulating what their parents do with social media, with our phones. Do you see any connection there, concern? Tremendous connection.

So, I just mentioned the eight or nine hours a day that kids are spending on their devices. We adults are spending the same amount, maybe a little bit more. And here's the issue.

So the number one predictor. Of a child's mental health outcomes is the relationship. that he or she has with their parents.

So now imagine a household. You look up the definition of family in the encyclopedia and it says it looks like the Brady bunch. But now a family of four is more like four individuals. that live under the same roof and don't really talk. Johnny's in the basement playing his video games.

Susie's upstairs in her bedroom on her phone. And mom and dad are doing their own thing.

So yes, we have to lead by example, and that means collecting our children. Yanking them out of this dead room. You know exactly what I'm talking about. I have kids the same age. Yeah.

And that's your pet. Yeah, bedroom starts with bed. That's where you're supposed to sleep. We got to reinvent the family room. Right?

Because that relationship, there is no relation. That's not a relationship. If you have four people that don't really communicate and live under the same roof, there's got to be dialogue. There's gotta be dinner, sitting around a dinner table. There's gotta be communication, right?

There's gotta be lessons, even the car rides to and from school. If you have a five or 10-minute ride, I see it every time. The head down in the passenger seat, no dialogue between parent and child. That's fertile ground, 180 days a year, five or 10 minutes a day. Huge.

Connection and communication, opportunity right there between parent and child.

So we gotta get back to those basics. Yeah. We do have to get back to that. I am so glad that you raised that, Tom. And I hope that any of our listeners across the nation are picking that up because it's tough.

We can all look at ourselves in the mirror and say, man, I let our house be divided by everybody doing their own thing. And, you know, the first one that says that's not the case, I'd love to sit down with them because it's just the normal lifestyle we've sort of developed in this country, and it's not healthy. And I'll tell you, I really did applaud. I didn't know this about Charlie Kirk until after his passing, but over the weekend, looking at so much stuff, I had seen where he took, he tried to take Fridays off and disconnect from his phone for his family and spend time in prayer and family dinner, whatever it is. But then he talked about how it actually helped his brain so that he could go back to doing the hard work that he did, but having that digital disconnect on Friday night.

This time for his brain to reset was really important. And this is as an adult, a young father and husband and adult. Maybe some lessons there. Tom Kirsting, as always, it is such a pleasure to have your great insight on the Brian Kilmead Show. Thank you, my friend.

It's going to be a crazy week, I think. Yeah, Griff. Thanks, man. Appreciate it. All right, Tim Kirsting joining us there on the great Brian Kilmead show.

This is your humble D.C. correspondent, Griff Jenkins, filling in. We'll be back. It's Brian Killmeade. I'm Janistine.

Join me every Sunday as I focus on stories of hope and people who are truly rays of sunshine in their community and across the world.com. The talk show that's getting you talking. You're with Brian Kilmead. This is Griff Jenkins, your humble DC correspondent, feeling on the Brian Kilmead show.

So much to get to on a Monday, so much to unpack. And we've talked to so many great guests about really what, you know. What happens next in the wake of Charlie's tragic killing? Where does the country go? What does this mean?

And the answer is. We don't know. If we're being honest. And I think you know, I sort of look through this lens as a reporter, because that's what I've been doing for so many years. And every now and then I hear from sort of an unsuspecting individual in this moment, in this story, that I think that That matters.

That was significant. And that was a comment that came not from a politician or necessarily a close friend of Charlie Kirk, but from the coach at the University of Oregon, the head football coach, Dan Lanning, the university that Charlie Kirk loves so much, had this observation in comment: listen here, cut 14. Recently, found out like Charlie Kirk was an Oregon fan, right? I didn't know that. I hurt for his wife, Erica, and their kids.

Like, that sort of evil should never exist. Life matters, you know, and I think we've lost sight. Of that, but I just wish I wish the world could learn a little bit of something from our locker room because we got a bunch of people with differences, and what you got in there is a bunch of people that love there. Take it to the locker room. And for any of you that played high school sports and I ran track and was on the soccer team, but we had the same locker room as a football team, and you did have people of all different backgrounds coming together and the coach there, Coach Lanning, saying, Life matters.

And that's a lesson we should all embody and rally around. And I think that is, that is, that's the place that the country needs to get to. And, you know, I've said throughout the morning, filling in from the Tony Snow radio show studio, Tony would have agreed with that. He was very similar to Charlie, and he often said, We've got to rebuild human hearts and persuade people that hope isn't not just possible, but essential. And the coach there, Coach Lanning, talking about life matters.

So this week, as you reflect, and we await by the end of the week, the great tribute out in Arizona of Charlie Kirk, think about. what matters to you. and certainly life does. Be of a Positive spirit, be kind to one another, disagree, engage, but goodness sakes, remember what Charlie and Tony would do, and that is to love one another. I'm Griff Jenkins on the Brian Kilmeat Show.

Hey, I'm Trey Gowdy, host of the Trey Gowdy Podcast. I hope you will join me every Tuesday and Thursday as we navigate life together and hopefully find ourselves a little bit better on the other side. Listen and follow now at FoxNewsPodcast.com. Mm.