America Fest 2025 December 18, 2025 7pm Hour

Summary

Podcast Summary: Real America’s Voice – America Fest 2025 (December 18, 2025, 7pm Hour)
Podcast: Real America’s Voice – iHeartPodcasts
Episode: America Fest 2025, December 18, 2025, 7pm Hour
Date: December 19, 2025
Location: Phoenix, Arizona (Turning Point USA, AM Fest)

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Main Theme / Purpose

This live episode covers the opening session of Turning Point USA’s America Fest 2025. The event is deeply marked by remembrance and tribute to Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, following his assassination earlier in the year. Speakers and hosts reflect on Charlie’s legacy, address themes of faith, freedom, generational leadership, and the ongoing health of the conservative movement. The event features personal memories, calls for unity, rallying speeches, and direct confrontations of conspiracy narratives that have swirled since Kirk’s death. Notable personalities include Erica Kirk, Ben Shapiro, Steve Bannon, and others.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Opening Energy & Legacy of Charlie Kirk

• Hosts: Bo Davidson, Ben Bergquam, Benny, Ray Harmony, Brian
• Energy & Crowds (04:06–05:04):
  • High enthusiasm and large turnout, even prompting jokes about attendees skipping work and school.
  • Focus on honoring Charlie Kirk’s legacy and inspiring the next conservative generation.
• Personal Tributes:
  • Betty (05:31): Discusses coming to RAV thanks to Charlie, connecting her media and congressional experience to her current role.

2. Reflections on Conservative Movement’s Present & Future

• Uncertainty & Cautious Optimism (06:28–07:47):
  • Panelists express uncertainty about the tenor of the event, given it’s the first since Charlie’s death.
  • Desire for unity, but acknowledgment of legitimate questions and ongoing infighting.
  • Key issues: mass deportations, prosecutions, and the importance of grassroots activism.

Notable Quote

“How do we get to where we’re getting? Mass deportations and mass prosecutions against the enemies within our own country and against the illegals… These are the things I want to hear.”
— Panelist (07:19)

• Passing the Torch (07:47–08:47):
  • Reflections on Charlie’s vision: “to inspire a generation of young leaders to take the torch and move it on.”
  • Memorable encounter: On election night 2020, Kirk predicted victory “if they don’t steal it.”

3. Faith and Spirituality

• Pastor John Amanchuku’s Invocation (08:51–11:46):
  • A prayerful call for God’s guidance, protection for Erica Kirk and TPUSA, and a return to righteousness.
  • Emphasis on America as a nation in spiritual need, evoking biblical exhortations.

Notable Moment

“We turn away from the culture, but we turn towards you… God, we know that America is in need of you. Your word says that righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach towards any people.”
— Pastor John Amanchuku (08:51)

• National Anthem (11:46–13:23):
  • The entire audience stands for the anthem, emphasizing patriotism and unity.

4. Charlie Kirk Legacy Montage & Reflections

• Character, Sacrifice, & American Values (15:09–19:46):
  • Charlie’s own words (archived/video) celebrating the pursuit of difficult but meaningful paths, and America’s history of ordinary people choosing sacrifice over comfort.

Notable Quote

“The more often that you choose the difficult but the right path over the easy path… that will reward you, your family, and this beautiful nation. He fell believing America was worth dying for.”
— Charlie Kirk (15:09)

• Spiritual Framing of Kirk’s Work (16:46–19:19):
  • America as a nation built by courageous, Bible-believing Christians; audience urged to seek the nation’s welfare and to act as a grassroots bulwark against “top-down revolution.”

5. Personal Remembrance & Challenge

• Erica Kirk Tribute (19:05–22:51):
  • Erica Kirk, Charlie’s widow, speaks to the crowd, highlighting Charlie as a peacemaker and coalition builder.
  • Legitimizes the grief, infighting, and “fractures” that surfaced after his death.
  • Emphasizes action and continuation of mission: “You are the legacy holders… Charlie always said the next generation will decide whether freedom endures.”

Notable Quote

“The tyrant dies and his rule is over. The martyr dies and his rule has just begun.”
— Host (20:09)

6. Erica Kirk’s Speech – Carrying Forward the Mission

• Technical Difficulties & Candid Resilience (24:17–28:44):
  • Erica opens unscripted due to iPad failure but uses humor and honesty to connect.
  • Shares inside stories (e.g., Charlie in the worst seat at the arena).
• Turning Point by the Numbers:
  • 80% of attendees are at their first TPUSA event.
  • 1 million+ students involved; over 4,500 chapters as of Dec 18, 2025.
  • 50 new chapters started daily; 8,000+ church partnerships.
• Reflections on Adversity:
  • “You learn very quickly who is ready to go to war with you…” (28:44).
  • Confronts infighting, media hostility, and underscores pressing need for peacemaking and coalition building.
• Call to Action:
  • Encourages students to “step right into your admin’s office” and start chapters.
  • Stresses that Turning Point is for all backgrounds, ages, and circumstances.
  • “Don’t you dare let anyone tell you you’re too young, not smart enough, not connected enough.”

Notable Quotes

“You are the heartbeat of this future and of this movement… Living proof that his mission did not die with him. It lives through you.”
— Erica Kirk (22:26)

“My challenge to you this weekend is very simple. Don’t just attend Amfest. Let it mark you. Let it stretch you. Let it challenge assumptions… That’s how we’re going to honor Charlie.”
— Erica Kirk (42:42)

7. Conservative Vision & Challenge from Ben Shapiro

• America’s “Golden Age” (44:21–45:02):
  • Framing: America is at a crossroads between “lions and scavengers.”
  • Reasserts that the future is in the room with the youth and attendees.
• Duties & Dangers in the Conservative Movement (45:26–63:24):
  • Pays tribute to Charlie Kirk’s coalition-building.
  • Five Core Duties of Conservative Commentators:
    1. Tell the Truth: Clarity, specificity; not fostering vague conspiracies.
    2. Speak from Principle, Not Personal Feeling: Calls out silence and accommodation of unfounded attacks (e.g., Candace Owens and others’ conspiracy theories about Kirk's death).
    3. Take Responsibility: Own guest choices and platforming (criticizes Tucker Carlson’s handling of Nick Fuentes and others).
    4. Provide Evidence: Emotive accusations and lazy “just asking questions” undermine informed discourse; actual conspiracies require real proof.
    5. Propose Solutions: Problem discussion must lead to actionable ideas, not merely “wrecking the system” or succumbing to despair.
  • Direct Naming & Accusation:
    • Explicitly calls out Candace Owens for stoking conspiracies, condemns hosts (including Tucker Carlson, Meghan Kelly) for silence or enabling.
    • Argues that vague accusations “make you stupider in the process.”
    • Affirms America’s greatness and the agency of the audience.

Notable Quotes

“Victory cannot be achieved without truth. Victory without truth is victory for a lie, and that is no victory at all, and unity without truth is no unity.”
— Ben Shapiro (45:52)

“The people who refuse to condemn Candace’s truly vicious attacks… are guilty of cowardice. Yes, cowardice.”
— Ben Shapiro (48:40)

“Just asking questions, positing vague conspiracies, raving like Alex Jones… None of it makes your life better. None of it. In fact, it makes your life markedly worse.”
— Ben Shapiro (59:30)

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Timestamps of Important Segments

| Timestamp | Segment Description | |------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 03:32 | Event launch, overview, hosts’ table intro | | 04:06 | Hosts discuss crowd energy, why attendees are excited | | 05:31 | Betty’s tribute to Charlie Kirk’s influence on her life and career | | 06:28 | Panelists reflect on event tone, generational and leadership transitions | | 08:51 | Pastor John Amanchuku’s invocation and spiritual framing | | 11:46 | National Anthem performance | | 15:09 | Tribute montage: Charlie Kirk’s words, courage, and sacrifice | | 19:05 | Erica Kirk describes post-assassination aftermath and peacemaking legacy | | 24:17 | Erica Kirk’s speech—personal stories, TPUSA stats, future plans | | 28:44 | Expansion highlights: chapters, church partnerships, Make Heaven Crowded Tour| | 42:42 | Erica Kirk’s closing challenge to attendees | | 44:21 | Ben Shapiro: vision for a “golden age” and key challenges | | 45:26 | Ben Shapiro’s duties for conservative voices, call-outs, and warnings | | 63:24 | (End of main content; transition to ads) |

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Memorable Quotes & Speaker Attributions

• Charlie Kirk (archive):

  “The more often that you choose the difficult but the right path over the easy path… that will reward you, your family, and this beautiful nation. He fell believing America was worth dying for.” (15:09)

• Erica Kirk:

  “You are the heartbeat of this future and of this movement… Living proof that his mission did not die with him. It lives through you.” (22:26)
  “Don’t you dare let anyone tell you you’re too young, not smart enough, not connected enough. As long as you’re part of Turning Point USA, we will empower you…” (28:44)

• Pastor John Amanchuku:

  “God, we know that America is in need of you. Your word says that righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach towards any people.” (08:51)

• Ben Shapiro:

  “Victory cannot be achieved without truth. Victory without truth is victory for a lie, and that is no victory at all, and unity without truth is no unity.” (45:52)
  “The people who refuse to condemn Candace’s truly vicious attacks… are guilty of cowardice. Yes, cowardice.” (48:40)
  “Just asking questions, positing vague conspiracies, raving like Alex Jones… None of it makes your life better. None of it.” (59:30)

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Flow, Language, and Tone

• Overall tone: Passionate, direct, emotional, at times combative—especially when addressing conspiracy theories and infighting. Deeply reverent and unifying during reflections on Charlie Kirk’s mission and Christian faith.
• Style: Conversational with moments of unscripted candor (notably from Erica Kirk).
• Message: The conservative movement must remain rooted in truth, responsible leadership, and courage in the face of adversity—personified in the memory and works of Charlie Kirk.

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Conclusion

This episode sets out the stakes and spirit of America Fest 2025: a movement mourning a fallen leader but energized to continue his work. Through sincerity, challenging calls to action, and a demand for principled leadership, the event both recommits to its founding ideals and confronts internal and external challenges head-on. The next generation is urged to actively carry the torch, not as passive inheritors, but as engaged builders and defenders of America’s values.

Transcript

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[A]

Turning Point USA brings you the voices shaping the future of this nation as.

[B]

We honor the legacy of Charlie Kirk.

[D]

And ignite the next generation of American leadership.

[B]

Featuring Vice President J.D.

[D]

Vance, Erica Kirk and Rabs very own Steve Bannon and Jack Bosovic. This is where faith, freedom and the America first movement collide.

[B]

America Fest starts now. Welcome to Turning Point USA's AM Fest 2025. Y' all give it up.

[D]

Who's pumped? Who is ready?

[B]

I'm Bo. Dave.

[D]

These guys are pumped. Yeah. I love it.

[B]

Well, I'm Bo Davidson, along with Ben Bergquam, Benny, Ray, Harmony and Brian. We are the four Bs hosting today's 2025.

[A]

Not the Heat squad, the four Bs, but the A squad. A squad. Hey, squad.

[D]

Okay, there you go.

[B]

And we are honoring Charlie Kirk's wonderful Legacy here at AmFest 2025. It is day one. We have just begun. Brian, you've seemed very pumped up since we've been here because you're noticing the energy in the crowd of all these people lining up to go into the auditorium right now.

[D]

I said this earlier on a Thursday at 1 o'. Clock. This place is full. I asked the question, by a show of hands, who skipped work today to come out to AM Fest? Raise your hand. Yeah, there you go.

[C]

That's right.

[D]

Yep.

[A]

We just had.

[D]

We just had a spike in the unemployment rate just went up. Don't tell their work. Don't show their faces. And then of course, kids can skip work or skip school to come here, but it's fired up. It's so early on Thursday, but yet we have a big crowd. It's great.

[B]

And Betty, you are new to the Rav family. We welcome you so delightfully because you're a wonderful lady with wonderful professional experience. You've been covering Congress, you've been covering the White House. You've been doing so much right off the bat. Tell us what it's meant to you to come to Turning Point now, working for Rav and covering the greatest president of a lifetime, for sure. But just what it's meant to you over the course of your career and what recently happened with you and certain in terms of honoring Charlie Kirk, getting castigated for that and now coming here.

[C]

Well, it's funny because I, I wouldn't be at RAB if it wasn't for Charlie, because if I wouldn't have went on my show that day and did a tribute and showed his face and cried ugly, cried on television, I would not be standing here with Real America's Voice. But it's just, it's super special and getting to be in D.C. with Brian and his intelligence and just the experience that he's right with the political sphere. You know, I went from working in a congressional office with Matt Gaetz and Paul Gosar to now being on the media side of things, and it's a lot different. But getting to carry on Charlie's legacy with Real America's Voice, with, with the network that gave him a part platform, with the network that gives us all a platform. It's just exceptional.

[B]

And Ben, we haven't heard any, any speakers speak tonight yet, but we're going to have Erica Kirk, we're going to have Ben Shapiro, Russell Brand, Michael Knowles, Tucker Carlson. This is the first Amfest without Charlie. Yeah. So what's the tenor going to be like? What do you expect speakers to speak about?

[C]

Well, you know, that's the big unknown.

[A]

I mean, all of this coming into this is, is that sense of cautious optimism, unknown uncertainty.

[D]

Where do we go from here?

[A]

And in particular, with all of the crazy infighting and things, attacks that have.

[D]

Been coming from some outside, you're looking.

[C]

At that, saying, okay, what are we going to hear?

[A]

And I, I can't tell you, I mean, honestly, until, till we actually see it.

[C]

I think obviously there's going to be.

[A]

A message of some sort of unity coming together. But I also think there's people that have legitimate questions.

[D]

And I mean, that goes back to.

[A]

President Trump and some of the, you know, the Epstein stuff, when all that.

[D]

Stuff was going down. And even still where people say, okay, we voted for this, we want this, but we're getting some of that, but.

[C]

Not all of that.

[A]

How do we get to where we're getting?

[D]

And these are the two things I want.

[A]

Mass deportations and mass prosecutions against the enemy's of our within our own country and against the illegals that were, you.

[C]

Know, I'm working with.

[A]

ICE on. Yeah.

[B]

Brian, what are some things that you hope to hear from the massive speakers this weekend? Because it could be anything, it could be remembrance, it could be legacy, it could be where do we go from here? It's next generation. You've already seen how young some of the people are here. What do you hope comes out of these next four days?

[D]

I think we're going to build upon what Charlie left for his entire organization to push forward and is to inspire a generation of young leaders to take the torch and move it on. You know, if you got the boomers moving out, I'm almost right behind the boomers in a way. Right. But there's a new generation coming up and I think that as long as, you know, we continue that conservative torch, that faith, family, God, that's what's important. And we want to remember Charlie. He would want us here to talk about the moments that we've had. I remember, and I didn't share this earlier, but on the 2020 election, the election day in 2020, I was in Grand Rapids, Michigan, sitting at a hotel, getting ready to fly back to Dallas, Texas. He walked by me and said, charlie, what do you think's gonna happen tonight? He goes, well, we'll win this election if they don't steal it. Lo and behold, that's exactly what happened. But it's, it's. He was so insightful to what was happening in America and was in touch with it. That's why he went, hey, we got somebody on stage. We do.

[B]

We've got Pastor John Amanchuku. Let's take a look in.

[D]

Thankful, unholy, without natural affection Truce breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce despises of those that are good traders Heady, high minded lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof from such. Turn away, Lord. We turn away from the culture, but we turn towards you. We turn away from fear, but we turn towards the power of the Holy Spirit and God. We turn our hearts in this moment towards you because we need your help. You are the God of Charlie Kirk. You are the God of Erica Kirk and God, we pray that you would place a hedge of protection upon Erica. That you would place a hedge of protection upon her children. That you would place a hedge of protection upon Turning Point usa. God, we pray that you would get the glory that out of every talk, out of every message and out of every sermon this week. God, we know that America is in need of you. Your word says that righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach towards any people. God, we turn towards you because we need your help. Lord, we want to pick up the microphone, but help us to pick up your word first. Help us to pick up the anointing first. Help us to pick up a relationship with you first so that when we get the mic we will know what you want us to say in a day like today. Lord, you are the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Lord, you are the God that goes before us. And your word tells us to pray for the peace of Israel, for they will prosper that love thee. God, your word is right and your word is true. So our next are set out tonight expecting you to do great and mighty things. And we give you honor because you are God and that there's no name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved. But at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, every tongue shall confess that Jesus is Lord. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Come on and help me lift up the name of Jesus on tonight.

[B]

Would you please remain standing for the national anthem? O say can you see by the dawn's early light what so proudly we hailed are the 20th twilight's last gleaming Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight O' er the ramparts we watched Were so gallantly streaming and the rocket's red glare the bombs bursting in air Gave proof through the night that our flag was too per.

[A]

O.

[B]

Say does that star spangled banner yet way. For the land of the free. And the hope.

[D]

Of the.

[A]

Praise. Sam.

[B]

In life you will realize the more rewarding thing to do might be the more difficult thing to to do. That is a guaranteed way that you will experience opposition. The most important question is not whether it is easy or not. It is is it worth it. And the more often that you choose the deep, the difficult, but the right path over the easy path is one that will reward you, your family and this beautiful nation. He fell believing America was worth dying for. And for 250 years our history has been written by those who stood firm.

[D]

Against every force who swore to break this. It.

[A]

Foreign.

[B]

We are in a spiritual war Everybody that is beyond just the material that we are seeing. This country was founded by courageous, Bible believing Christians. Jeremiah 29:7. Seek the welfare of the nation that you are in because your welfare is tied to your nation's welfare. What makes this movement different is that you are here as a grassroots response to the top down revolution happening in this country. Disobedience to tyrants is obedience to God because liberty is not man's idea, it is God's idea. Will the people who are the sovereign in this country do everything they possibly can with this incredible blessing given to us by God to fight back and win?

[A]

Where then is the road to peace? You and I have the courage to say to our enemies, there is a price we will not pay. There is a point beyond which they must not advance.

[B]

When Turning Point USA was started, I could not have imagined what God had in store for this organization. My political journey was in the midst of the Obama craze in Chicago. As someone who was generally conservative, I realized this generation, Millennials, is going to be the most progressive generation in history if we don't do something about this. We're active in about 15 campuses and we're growing very, very quickly. And keep in mind, this is not just a flash in the PAN movement. We're going to become an institution to give them the power and the confidence to stand up and let their voice be heard. I was 18. No idea what I was doing. No connections, no money. We didn't have an office. We didn't have a staff. It was just me just traveling the country doing this. Pure grit, pure energy. We are an organization committed to ideas and to principles, not the political parties or politicians. We are in a generational battle right now that the stakes could not be higher. And the experiment and the gift that our founding fathers gave to us could be easily lost if we don't make the proper choices in life. Course corrections that's a lot of people, Utah. I'll tell you what.

[C]

After Charlie's assassination, we didn't see violence. Instead, we saw what my husband always prayed. We saw revival.

[A]

You're gonna hear what Charlie did.

[D]

But I'm here today to tell you.

[A]

The why in what he did. The why brought him the courage. The why brought him the wisdom and the strength. The why is the one that Charlie wanted to welcome as the guest of honor. The guest of honor. His resume is long. He's the king of glory. He's the prince of peace. He's the savior of the world.

[D]

He's the living God.

[A]

He's the God of all mercy and.

[D]

Grace, the total embodiment of love, the total embodiment of truth.

[A]

And he's here today to call his children back to him. I know I speak for everyone here.

[C]

Today when I say that none of.

[D]

Us will ever forget Charlie Kirk.

[B]

We speak with Charlie and for Charlie, louder than ever. The tyrant dies and his rule is over. The martyr dies and his rule has just begun. We should be thankful, not angry, to live in this country.

[A]

Would you agree? We should be thankful.

[B]

We should be kissing the ground and saying we are the luckiest human beings ever to exist, that we are able to live in this country at this time. And yet I see that half our country seems upset. They seem angry that they're born in this country. America is the greatest country ever to exist. Period, Bar none is the greatest country ever to exist, right? 250 years of brave Americans have proven those words true. Ordinary people choosing sacrifice over comfort, duty over self. I want to honor God in all that I do. I want to be a great husband, a great father. I want to serve this country. I want to try to continue to lead this movement and to speak truth and to never lie. To stop thinking about yourself all the time and said, think about what you should do to help other people and to defend this country above yourself. You still live in the greatest nation ever to exist. In the history of the world. There is still so much to be hopeful and to be thankful for. And we have agency when truth is under attack. America has always answered with voices that refuse to be silenced. Charlie was one of those voices. And now it's our turn to pick up the mic. We have only begun to fight. A lot of this could be done without me. And I believe that. I mean from the high school department, the college department, let's make turning points so big that it can survive beyond just the founder. A lot of organizations and groups, as soon as a founder leaves, it just kind of collapses. A lot of my job is not always in the day to day details. It's very much vision casting, very much driving success. But we have a great board and God forbid, if something happens, they'll figure it out. I appoint my wife to run Turning Point usa. If something happens to me, Erica would do a great job.

[C]

You are the heartbeat of this future and of this movement, everything that Charlie built. You guys are the legacy holders of that. You are living proof that his mission did not die with him. It lives through you. And Charlie always said the next generation will decide whether freedom endures. And because of you, I Know that freedom will endure.

[B]

The next speaker is a very, very special speaker, and she has had a heroic last year, and I believe she's the best mom in the world. She is my hero and the love of my life. Join me in welcoming Erica Kir.

[C]

This is a full circle moment for me. Two years ago, my husband stood on this stage and said, here I am, Lord, use me. And boy, did he. You know, it's really interesting. The enemy has thrown a lot of curveballs at us today and this week and the past three months. And one of them is the fact that my entire speech has been wiped because my iPad won't even turn on. So that's a fun technical difficulty that we can figure out. So we're just going to wing it. We're just going to wing it. I was going to share with you Stats. I was going to share with you all of the things that we have going on building. So I'm going to just start it off with this. So last year, Charlie rewind. Amfest is Charlie's Super Bowl. Thank you. These are the stats. I got the stats. No speech. So again, we're gonna wing it. So Amfest. Last year, Charlie reminded me that this was his Super Bowl. And for those of you who are sitting in the back, my husband was very intentional about making sure he was in the back because he wanted to sit and what he considered maybe the worst seat in the arena. And he made it a point to listen to the whole intro video, every speaker video, and he would tell the team, louder, more bass, more noise. He would say, there's a treble and a bass knob. Turn the ones to make it right. So even if you feel like you're in the worst seat in the house, you're not. Because Charlie sit in one of those. So you're in. You're in good company up there. But what's also very interesting is that when Charlie first and the team first came up with, since I don't have a speech, I might as well just walk around. When Charlie first came up with Amfest, he thought to himself, who would not love to celebrate America? So we're going to name it Amfest. And that's what he did. And I'll never forget last year, we were blessed to have President Trump come and speak. And afterwards, Charlie turns to me, starts running like, where are you going? He's like, I'm about to go on Air Force One. I'm in heels trying to chase him to figure out what is going on. He goes, okay, so I got to get on Air Force One. I was like, good for you, baby. He's like, okay, so I need you to close out the Amfest, and I need you to do the. The staff meeting afterwards. And I was like, excuse me? He's like, yeah, you're closing out AmFest. And I was like, I am not closing out Am Fest. He's like, yes, you are. And I said, what am I supposed to say? And he goes, you'll figure it out. That's why I married you. I was like, you always say that to me whenever we're in a position where we won't. Like, there's no script. There's nothing. He's like, baby, you'll figure it out. That's why I married you. So again, here we are, right? So now we're opening AM Fest. But what's so interesting and what I have learned so much within these past three months. Again, the enemy. But he will never win. We know we're on the winning side. God is so good. So Charlie loved to share AMFAs AM Fest stats, so that's what we're gonna do really quick. He would love for you guys to know that 80% of the attendees have never attended a TEEP USA event before. So thank you for everyone who is new, welcome home. Turning Point USA is your home, and we're loving that you're here. One third of the attendees are students.

[A]

50.

[C]

Yeah, we love our students. 54% are female attendees. Okay. We have 40 breakout sessions, 178 sponsors, all 50 states represented. We have 25 countries represented, plus Puerto Rico, but I have the list here. Don't worry, guys. Egypt is not on the list. Don't worry about that. But, oh, how funny. I say Egypt and my iPad turns on. That's fun. Where were we? Okay, so anyways, the past three months, I have learned a lot. You learn very quickly who is ready to go to war with you. You learn very quickly who thinks emotionally versus logically when you go through something as horrible that not only myself went through, but every single one of you in here that loved my husband. You find out who stays with you, who leaves. You find out a lot. You find out who's going to pray with you when they there's no words left. And you also learn some unexpected things, like the fact that Joy Reid probably needs a really, really good hug. And honestly, I'm here for it if she needs it. I got a good hug for you, good hug for you. I'll even touch the back of your head. But I love you guys. But here's what I've learned the most in these past three months, is that my husband, he deeply mattered on a multitude of levels. So much so that it proved even more, once he was assassinated, how much of a peacemaker he was and how much of a coalition builder he was. Because when he was assassinated, we saw infighting, we've seen fractures, we've seen bridges being burned that shouldn't be burnt. We saw a lot on full display. And what I knew as a wife, and I'm the same exact way as him. If you are trying to put up fight or flight mode, we're always fight mode. We don't retreat. Charlie would go wherever he needed to go. And I'm the same exact way. Same exact way. And you'll learn that. You'll learn that about me the more that you get to know me. I know I'm new here. I'm new here. But you, you'll learn. You'll learn. Him and I were not afraid of that. And that's also why the past several months, several weeks, I honored my husband by completing all of his pre planned fall media tour hits for his book, his any commitment he had, I wanted to honor that for him. I wasn't going on a media tour myself. This was for my husband. Because in our household, our word is our bond. And when you give it, you uphold it. So I honored my husband that way. And so what I'm inspired by is the fact that Charlie and I again will go wherever we need to go, but so will you. That's why you guys are here. All of you are here because you know that you're sitting saying, I want to do something. So that's why you came here. You came here to meet other people, to know that you're not in this fight alone. You're here for a purpose. God made you for a purpose. Students, raise your hands. Out of those students, drop your hands. Put your hand up. If you're in high school, okay, all of you, I love it. I love my high schoolers. Charlie had a very special place in his heart for Club America. He's like, how could you not love Club America? All of you again, going where you need to go. If your Club America is not set up or you want to set one up, step right into your admin's office. College students, raise your hands. Got a lot of them. So where you got to be willing to go is on your campus. That means either starting a chapter, joining a chapter, maybe even one day putting up a tent in the quad. We're not afraid for churchgoers. Hold your pastor accountable for biblical citizenship. Okay? There are so many ways to get involved. That's why Charlie built Turning Point usa. That's way he did. He didn't care. Your race, your age, your background. If Charlie listened to every single person that told him, you're too young to make a difference, you don't have enough connections, you're not going to do it, he would have let that noise consume him and he would not have built the machine that he has built today. So don't you dare let anyone tell you you're too young, you're not smart enough, and you're not connected enough. As long as you're a part of Turning Point usa, we will empower you and give whatever you need to be able to make that come to life. Okay? Charlie wasn't just a speaker. He wasn't just a political thinker. He wasn't just a thought leader. Again, he was a bridge. He was a pathway. He was a connection point to generations. He was a pathway and connection point to communication, to inner politics. And he also looked at a generation that has been mocked, that has been dismissed, that has been discouraged, and told them, you matter, your ideas matter, your decisions matter. And he would say, this country is still worth defending and still worth sacrificing for. So like all of you, this is our turning point as well, especially as we move into 2026. And I want to share with you off this paper. I'm not going to wing at this one because I want all of you guys to absorb the. The magnitude of these numbers. The number of student requests to get involved since 9, 10, 140,000 plus get involved requests have been submitted since 9, 10, 140,001. Total number of students involved. This is involved within Turning Point usa. One million plus students involved in Turning Point usa. Current chapter numbers as of December 18, 2025. 3082 Club America chapters, 1432 college chapters. So that leaves 4514 total chapters as of today. And we are starting 50 chapters per day at Turning Point USA. It's amazing. Something I also love right now is how we are getting some amazing state partnerships with Club America. We I want to give a huge shout out to Oklahoma. Oklahoma's in the house. Florida. Okay. Indiana. Texas, of course, and Tennessee. Another turning point for us for 2026 is the Make Heaven Crowded tour. Something I'm very excited about. For those of you who attended the memorial service, that revival is a slice of heaven that I'm going to make sure we take around this whole entire country. So we have different tour stops that are going to be coming up that I want you guys to be aware of. Feel free to take a picture whenever they put it up there. But if you're in any of these cities, we are bringing that to you. It's going to be amazing. God is so good. God is so good. I also want to note that our church partnership, since 9 10, we have over 8,000 church partnerships and counting. This one's very special to me. Charlie's love for debate will always be the DNA of Turning Point usa. We believe in debate because we believe in truth, and we believe in civil discourse because we believe that truth can withstand scrutiny. So that is why we will be launching the Pick up the Mic initiative and getting back on campus for Prove Me Wrongs and campus tour events this spring and fall of 2020 26. I'm also really excited about everything that we're doing at Turning Point Action. We are locked in and mission focused for both 2026 and 2028. We're investing in states and not just in races. So what I mean by that is we are building the red wall. Arizona, Nevada, New Hampshire. That's going to be very important to us. We're going to ensure that President Trump has Congress for all four years. We are going to get my husband's friend, J.D. vance, elected for 48 in the most resounding way possible. And for our hometown, Arizona, folks, are you guys in the house? Arizona, Go bigs or go home is where we're at right now mentally. But my husband didn't build this movement so people could feel comfortable. He built this movement so people could feel brave and to be brave with action, so people could see on full display that when you stop talking to people, especially those that you disagree with, you are the one that actually becomes weaker. Let that sink in. So you may not agree with everyone on this stage this weekend, and that's okay. Welcome to America. Charlie would have welcomed that. He believed disagreement was something not to be canceled. It was something to confront with clarity, courage and grace. And Charlie loved truth way more than conformity. So this weekend, for me personally, is laced with nostalgia and it's laced with hope. But deeper than that, it's about carrying forward what Charlie built and ultimately what he gave his life for. And I've said it before, and I'll say it again, the mission didn't end with Charlie's life. It's being lived out through each and every one of you in your own way. Again, it doesn't matter. Your age doesn't matter. Your race doesn't matter. Your background. Amfest is not about echo chambers. It's very important to know that, because it's about sharpening one another. It's about digging deeper into ideas instead of retreating into slogans. And it's about remembering that freedom requires responsibility and truth requires courage. So my challenge to you this weekend is very simple. Don't just attend Amfest. Let it mark you. Let it stretch you. Let it challenge assumptions, strengthen convictions, and maybe even make you a little uncomfortable, because that's where growth happens. In those moments, let it be another turning point in your life, another moment where you decide not to drift, not to disengage, not to give in to cynicism, but to stand up boldly, to be brave, to speak clearly. Because that is how we are going to honor Charlie. We are going to honor him not just with words, but with action. So with that, welcome to Amfest. God bless you guys.

[D]

Sam.

[A]

Well, I couldn't be more excited to be here today. The golden age of America is just beginning. I really believe that America right now is divided between what I like to call the lions and the scavengers. Lions are people who want to build things, people who are productive. The scavengers believe that if you fail, it's probably somebody else's fault. Donald Trump and the American people are about to make our economy dynamic again. Free markets are merit. Free markets are justice. Free markets are innovation, and they are dynamism. How do we retain the momentum? And the answer is we do the right things. The future of the country is not just President Trump. The future of the country is in this room. These young people here, it's the people who are in the audience. The future of the country is beginning right now.

[B]

Ladies and gentlemen, Ben Shapiro.

[A]

Thank you so much. Thank you so much. It's obviously a massive honor to be here at Turning Point usa. It's even more of an honor to follow Erica Kirk, a heroic figure and a true American patriot. I really believe that the best way to judge a goodness of a man is to see the goodness of his wife and his children. And on that measure, Charlie was unsurpassed. Erica and her children are in all of our hearts. And, of course, this is an incredibly bittersweet moment. It's absolutely bitter because of the murder of our friend Charlie Kirk, an irreplaceable human being. I knew Charlie from the time he was 18 years old, and I watched him build himself into one of the most powerful Exponents of conservative in America, one of the most powerful coalition builders in American history. But it's also sweet to see the number of people who continue to remember Charlie each and every day and to carry on his mission. Well, today I want to talk about the future of the country and the future of this country. This amazing country relies on the future of the conservative movement. It relies on what TPUSA defines as its core mission. Freedom, free markets, and limited government. And most of all, most of all, the future of this country relies on truth. This country relies on truth. Because victory, true, real, lasting victory, victory cannot be achieved without truth. Victory without truth is victory for a lie, and that is no victory at all. And unity without truth is no unity. It is merely solidarity and falsehood. You see, we live in a chaotic time. In a time when lots of people are asking lots of legitimate questions about the conservative movement. What ought we to think about the relationship between free markets and traditional virtue? How should we craft a pragmatic foreign policy that spreads our interests and upholds our ideals? What governmental means are appropriate to achieve political ends? All of these questions aren't new, of course. They've been asked for as long as human beings have been talking about politics. Thousands of years. And over the course of this conference, you'll hear a lot of opinions on a lot of these questions. I have my own perspectives on them, of course. You can hear them every single day on my show. My fundamental values have been the same for 25 years. Peace through strength on foreign policy, traditional values on social policy, free markets with regard to economics. But today I want to talk about something even more important. How to discern those attempting to speak truth from frauds and grifters. Because something is new. An informational environment rife with both opportunity and chaos. Opportunity because the legacy media gatekeepers are no longer in charge of what we see and what we hear. And chaos because an anarchic informational environment means we actually have to be smart in how we assess the information and arguments that we hear. Why does that matter? Well, because today the conservative movement is in serious danger. It is in danger not just from a left that all too frequently excuses everything up to and including murder. The conservative movement is also in danger from charlatans who claim to speak in the name of principle, but actually traffic in conspiracism and dishonesty, who offer nothing but bile and despair, who seek to undermine fundamental principles of conservatism by championing enervation and grievance. These people are frauds, and they are grifters and they do not deserve your time. And they are something worse than that. A danger to the only movement capable of stopping the left to from wrecking the country wholesale. So today I want to discuss five obligations that people who speak to you on matters of importance have to you. I want to speak to you about our duties. Our first duty is truth. We owe you the truth. That means we should not mislead you. It means we shouldn't hide the ball. We shouldn't be deliberately obscure about what we're telling you. We have an obligation to clarity and to honesty. This means that we actually have to be clear in the language that we use. We should not traffic in generality. We should not say things like they shot Charlie without specifying whom we mean by they. The person who allegedly shot Charlie Kirk and whom all the evidence points at, all of it is a gay, trans loving, furry. If we are going to target ideological movements, we should talk about the fact that the radical trans movement treats all those who oppose it as existential threats. Or if we are going to talk about the Democratic Party making room for the radical trans movement and echoing its inflammatory rhetoric, well, we should talk about that. Those are specific problems and they require specific responses. When people say they shot Charlie, however, they are instead trafficking in vagary that results in increased hatred without proposing any effective response. They are fostering despair and rage and that makes things worse. We must also be honest about what people say and do, regardless of what that means. Coalitionally, it is the job of politicians to build coalitions. It's the job of those of us who try to shape public opinion, to hold politicians to account, to hold them accountable to our values. We must not let fear of audience deter us from telling the truth. We must not let fear of other hosts deter us from telling the truth. So, for example, if Candace Owens decides to spend every day since the murder of Charlie Kirk, So if Candace Owens decides to spend every day since the murder of Charlie Kirk casting aspersions at TP USA and the people who work here, who works with Charlie every single day, his best friends, to cast aspersions at Mikey McCoy and Andrew Colvin and Blake Neff and Tyler Boyer and yes, at Erica Kirk, and to imply or outright claim complicity in a cover up over Charlie's murder, to spew absolutely baseless trash implicating everyone from French intelligence to Mossad to members of TPUSA in Charlie's murder or a cover up in that murder, then we as people with a microphone have a moral obligation to call that out. By name, Erica Kirk and TPUSA never, never should have put in, never should have been put in the position to have to defend themselves against such specious and evil attacks, particularly in a time of mourning. And the people who refuse to condemn Candace's truly vicious attacks, and some of them are speaking here, are guilty of cowardice. Yes, cowardice. The fact that they have said nothing while Candace has been vomiting all sorts of hideous and conspiratorial nonsense into the public square for years is just as cowardly. Second, because we owe you the truth. We owe you the duty to stand. Speak out of principle, not personal feeling. It should not matter whether we despise someone or whether we love someone. The question is what they say and what they do and whether those things are morally decent or not. On a political level, do they foster freedom, justice and prosperity? On a personal level, do they treat others as they would wish to be treated? Personal feeling is not a substitute for moral judgment. To take again the Candace Owens situation as an example. Friendship with public figures who say or do evil things is not an excuse for silence on the matter. Politics is not the sisterhood of the traveling pants. Politics is about principle. And if you are willing to sacrifice basic truth and simple principle in favor of emotional solidarity, you have betrayed your fundamental duty to the American people. First off, I should break the omerte here and just be a little bit clear. The notion that people in our industry are close friends, like we all take holiday breaks with each other and go to each other's kids graduations and stuff is generally untrue. Some people do that. Most of us don't. We see each other at conferences and we talk on the phone and all the rest. We're business colleagues. But even if it were true that other public figures were our best friends, our very best friends, that does not relieve us of our duty to speak out of principle and not to cover up evil or shy away from addressing it out of friendship. So no, Tucker Carlson, it is not an excuse to go silent on Candace's targeting of tpusa. Or to mirror her bullshit lines of questioning because you love Candace personally. The same holds true of Meghan Kelly, a person I consider a friend. Characterizing Candace as a young mother and thus shying away from condemning her actions or fibing me about them. That is a non starter. Meghan Markle is a young mother. Ilhan Omar is a young mother. That doesn't matter. And when Meghan said this week, my goal and my job here is to try to understand, yes, where Candace is coming from on this and says she sees no purpose in inserting herself quote into this. On one side, that is a moral and logical absurdity. There is only one moral side here. Erica Kirk's side. You know, the side of the widow with two children whose husband was shot live on camera in front of all of us. Friendship with the person accusing TPUSA of a cover up of Charlie's murder is no excuse for cowardice. Third, and relatedly, we have a duty to take responsibility for what we say and do. If we hire awful people, we're responsible for that. I have some experience there, as you might suspect. That means that if we offer a guest for your viewing, we owe it to you to ask the kinds of questions that actually get at the truth. If we agree with the guest, that's fine, but we should own it. So for example, if you host a Hitler apologist, Nazi loving, anti American piece of refuse like Nick Fuentes, You know the Nick Fuentes who said that the Vice President of the United States is a quote, fat gay race traitor married to a jeet. The person who said that Charlie Kirk was a quote, retarded idiot. The person who said, and pardon my language here, it's his quote that he, quote, took Turning Point USA and fucked it. And that's why it's filled with gripers. If you have that person on your show and you proceed to glaze him, you ought to own it. There is a reason that Charlie Kirk despised Nick Fuentes and indeed even chided Dinesh d' Souza for debating him. He knew that Nick Fuentes is an evil troll and that building him up is an act of moral imbecility. And that is precisely what Tucker Carlson did. He built Nick Fuentes up and he ought to take responsibility for that. Just as he ought to take responsibility for glazing pornographer and alleged sex trafficker Andrew Tate, or for mainstreaming fake historian and pseudo Nazi apologist Daryl Cooper. As America's best and most honest popular historian. Hosts are indeed responsible for the guests they choose and the questions they ask those guests. Fourth, because we have a duty to truth, we also have a duty to provide you with evidence of the claims that we make. Emotive accusations, conspiracy theories, and just asking questions that's lazy and stupid and misleading. None of them are a substitute for truth. None of them are a substitute for evidence. So when Candace Owens says, I don't know, no, but I know that is retarded and we are all more retarded for having heard it. When Steve Bannon, for example, accuses his foreign policy, opponents of loyalty to a foreign country. He's not actually making an argument based on evidence. He's simply maligning people, people that he disagrees with. Which is indeed par for the course from a man who was once a PR flack for Jeffrey Epstein. Check the record. Our duty to provide you evidence means we actually have to do much more than just ask questions. Just asking questions is something my 5 year old does, and it's really cute when it comes from my five year old. But when grown men and women spend their days just asking questions without, you know, seeking answers, they are lying to you. In fact, they're doing something even worse. They are seeding distrust in the world around you, and they are enervating you in the process. So, for example, if many speakers, including Tucker Carlson and others, get on stage here at TPUSA and claim, without proper evidence that Jeffrey Epstein was running a Mossad rape ring being covered up by the Trump administration, they are not actually uncovering a conspiracy or effectuating a solution. They are claiming a special provenance to information they won't let you see, which builds their power and leaves you with none. They are also implicating in their speculation actual human beings, good human beings, like Cash Patel and Dan Bongino and Pam Bondi and, yes, the President of the United States, even if they are too cowardly to say President Trump's name. And that means you won't trust those good people in the future. You haven't gotten smarter, you've just been manipulated. When forced to demonstrate their evidence, these same people will often refuse to provide it. They'll claim ignorance. They'll pretend they're outside the system and they don't have access to actual information. You know, they're just asking questions. But many of these same people have direct pipelines to informational sources. So, for example, if Tucker wants answers to his questions about, say, Jeffrey Epstein, he could call the Vice President of the United States. He's quite close with him. But he won't because that might undermine the empty speculation. None of this means there aren't actual real conspiracies in the world. Of course there are, but actual conspiracies require actual evidence. Yes, there was a Russiagate conspiracy. And we know the names of the people involved and what they did. We know Hillary Clinton and Fusion gps and James Comey and Loretta lynch and Adam Schiff. We know all of those names, people. Yes, there was a COVID 19 conspiracy. We know that Anthony Fauci worked to shut down alternative solutions from people like Jay Bhattacharya but when people posit a conspiracy and then provide you no evidence, they are doing you a fundamental disservice and they are making you stupider in the process. Finally, because it is our job to make the lives of our audience better, that's really our job is to give you more information to make your lives better. We have a duty to propose solutions. That's why we have to talk about our problems in order to find the solutions. That's what politics was supposed to be about after all. Finding solutions to our common problems. If we speak endlessly about the problems we face without ever positing a solution other than wrecking the system or centralizing power in a cult like figure, we are not finding solutions. We are merely making problems worse. Just asking questions, positing vague conspiracies, raving like Alex Jones about the secret confederacies that control your life. None of it makes your life better. None of it. In fact, it makes your life markedly worse. That's because if you truly come to believe that nothing in your life is in your control, you can't even take control of your own life. You despair of your ability to change your own circumstances. And then you fail. And you must not fail. Because here is the most fundamental truth of all in the United States, for all of its problems, many of which, a huge number of which are real and serious, the United States is still the greatest country in the history history of planet Earth. We have the greatest constitution ever devised by man. We have the greatest founding philosophy ever put to paper in the Declaration of Independence. In this country, you can make of yourself what you will and if there are true obstacles standing in your way.

[B]

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