The Charlie Kirk Show

Episode: Charlie's 2024 THOUGHTCRIME Thanksgiving With the Crew

Date: November 27, 2025
Host: Charlie Kirk

Overview

This festive episode brings together Charlie Kirk and his crew for a lively, tradition-filled "Thoughtcrime Thanksgiving." Eschewing typical headlines, the group dives into nostalgic stories, heated debates over Thanksgiving rituals, food purism, rites of passage, and the evolving culture surrounding the holiday. The episode balances humor, spirited disagreement, and a reflective gratitude for national traditions, with a particular focus on the importance and legacy of Thanksgiving in American culture.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Tone: Thanksgiving Traditions & Uniforms

• The team opens with banter about their Thanksgiving attire, including turkey hats and Arizona State shirts (01:10–02:00).
• Charlie sets boundaries for the conversation: “Thanksgiving is not about what you want; it’s about what your ancestors did.” (12:44)

2. The Territorial Cup Debate

• Spirited discussion about the oldest college football rivalry and the Territorial Cup.
  • Tyler: “Arizona has the longest rivalry game in the country. The Territorial cup between Arizona State and Arizona. People don’t believe it.” (02:55)
  • Fact-checking ensues, with multiple rivalries and trophies brought up. The group agrees the Territorial Cup is the oldest rivalry trophy, not the oldest game (05:47, 06:10).

3. Thanksgiving Food Purism: Turkey, Sides, and Outrage

• Strong opinions emerge on permissible Thanksgiving meats:
  • “You must have turkey. It is required,” (Blake, 08:01).
  • Steak at Thanksgiving? “Not allowed.”
• Ham and steak are debated as secondary options; consensus: steak is right out for Thanksgiving, but fine for Christmas (09:01).
• Cranberry sauce: It must be “straight out of the can. Yes. Taken vertically with no adjustments.” (Charlie, 09:25)
• Stuffing vs. Dressing:
  • “Does the stuffing go in the turkey or is it prepared outside?” (Charlie, 09:50)
  • Dressing is outside, stuffing is inside, though everyone admits to using terms interchangeably (15:08–16:11).

4. The War on Sides: Casserole, Corn, and Sweet Potatoes

• Green bean casserole divides the table:
  • Charlie: “No, casserole. I never said casserole. The casserole is a...”
  • Crew: “Casserole is a staple. Absolute Thanksgiving thing.” (11:05)
• Sweet potatoes: Marshmallows are a “disgrace” (11:28).
• The only acceptable corn is “cornbread...you have to bend the knee to the corn God. And cornbread has to be either the dressing…” (Charlie, 11:54)

5. Thanksgiving Heritage: Tradition over Preference

• Charlie asserts: “It doesn’t matter if you don’t want cranberries, you don’t like turkey. Suck it up. It’s Thanksgiving.” (12:54)
• Reflections on food regionalization (e.g., jalapeno cranberries in Arizona) cause further playful argument (13:11).

6. Timing and Structure of Thanksgiving Dinner

• Lunch or Dinner?
  • Charlie: “Thanksgiving meal is both. Around 3:30 to 4:00 pm — that is the sweet spot.” (17:11)
  • Blake: “That is way too late. Neff family tradition is maybe 1 to 1:30 pm.” (17:29)
• Football:
  • Charlie explains the tradition of watching games, with mixed feelings about modern, commercialized football schedules on Thanksgiving (18:03–18:28).

7. Dessert: The Non-Negotiables

• Pumpkin pie is essential; whipped cream mandatory:
  • Charlie: “It is a non negotiable.” (17:07)
  • Others mention pecan pie, chocolate pecan pie, and a general calorie amnesty for the day (20:13–20:41).

8. Reflecting on National Gratitude & Thanksgiving’s Deeper Meaning

• Charlie: “Thanksgiving is one of America’s greatest traditions...a day just to give thanks.” (21:01)
• Discussion of the holiday’s roots—gratitude to God, the Pilgrims, and America’s unique national holiday for giving thanks.
  • Shout-out to Rush Limbaugh’s recounting of Thanksgiving’s true story. “They tried socialism. It failed. Then they gave people ownership...and then they had an overabundance of their harvest. And so they gave thanks to God.” (Charlie & Crew, 22:32–22:58)

9. Evolution (and Demise) of Black Friday

• The crew reminisces about the original “gritty” Black Friday, waiting until midnight in the cold for deals.
  • Charlie: “There was a grittiness to Black Friday. You had to earn it.” (25:58)
  • Internet and corporate greed are blamed for killing the classic shopping tradition.
  • Shift from accomplishment to convenience with Cyber Monday evokes nostalgia for lost rites of passage (27:42–28:41).
  • Crew share personal Black Friday and retail work stories, including working early-morning Target shifts (29:56).

10. Rites of Passage Lost to Technology

• The group laments the disappearance of youth milestones:
  • Calling houses and speaking to adults
  • Memorizing phone numbers
  • Navigating without GPS, using MapQuest or written directions
  • “Knowing the dial up sound is definitely a rite of passage...not having super fast Internet all the time.” (Charlie, 38:55)
• Several mention how these experiences built life skills and self-reliance.

11. Technology and the Brain: GPS, Memory, and Growth

• A fascinating discussion on how using GPS vs. memorizing directions shapes brain development.
  • Charlie references the “Knowledge” test for London cab drivers and cites research showing their hippocampus grows in response to strenuous mental navigation practice (41:09–42:33).
  • “Meaning that your brain can actually become better at a certain task.” (Charlie, 42:29)
  • Crew posits that reliance on GPS might literally make us less capable mentally (43:07–43:33).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Charlie Kirk on Thanksgiving purity:

  “Thanksgiving is not about what you want to do. It is what your ancestors did...If you don’t like cranberries, you don’t like turkey—suck it up. It’s Thanksgiving.” (12:44–12:54)

• Blake on tradition:

  “You must have turkey. It is required...Any meat you have should be from like a central meat dispensing entity.” (08:01)

• Charlie on corn:

  “Corn has no redemptive value unless it is for Thanksgiving, because then it is a sacrament to Squanto.” (12:10)

• Charlie on gratitude:

  “I do not think you can have joy, I do not think you can have, be content if you’re not grateful. And I think it’s a beautiful thing, as a nation, we have a day to say thank you.” (21:52)

• On lost rites of passage:

  “Some of these other rites of passage...be home before dark...memorize the phone numbers of at least five people...I also think it was really important that when I used to call somebody’s house, I had to speak to an adult.” (Charlie, 34:50–35:32)

• On brain growth and navigation:

  “This is actually...the more you work it out, the same way like when you go to the gym and you’re like, ‘I’m going to focus on whatever muscle right here’...the more you work it out, your brain becomes better.” (Charlie, 42:35–43:06)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Thanksgiving Uniforms & Territorial Cup Banter (01:10–06:00)
• Thanksgiving Food Rules (07:35–13:32)
• Debate: Sides and Traditions (14:56–17:01)
• Dessert Decisions & Pumpkin Pie Mandate (16:30–17:07)
• Timing of the Thanksgiving Meal & Football (17:11–18:28)
• Black Friday: The Good Old Days (25:08–28:41)
• Lost Rites of Passage (34:50–36:36)
• Maps, Directions, and GPS vs. Memory (38:55–43:33)
• Farewell & Gratitude Reflection (44:01–end)

Tone & Takeaways

The episode is marked by friendly mock-debate, playful nostalgia, and a reverence for American tradition. Listeners get a front-row seat to debates on what truly constitutes a “traditional” Thanksgiving, why rites of passage matter, and how technology has transformed—and sometimes diminished—these holiday experiences.

If you want to relive American traditions, get worked up about canned cranberries, or simply enjoy Thanksgiving table banter, this episode embodies all that's chaotic, cherished, and character-building about the holiday.

Happy Thanksgiving from The Charlie Kirk Show.