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Charlie Kirk and Political Violence - The Find Out Podcast | Wave AI Podcast Notes

Charlie Kirk and Political Violence

Thu Sep 11 2025

The Find Out team reacts to the horrific assassination of Charlie Kirk, the rise of political violence, and how MAGA leaders are already weaponizing his death.

Summary

The Find Out Podcast

Episode: Charlie Kirk and Political Violence

Date: September 11, 2025
Host(s): Zach, Chris, Tim, Luke

Episode Overview

In this emotionally raw and unfiltered episode, the hosts of The Find Out Podcast gather in the immediate aftermath of the assassination of right-wing commentator Charlie Kirk. Setting aside their scheduled interview, they candidly process the implications of this violent event amidst ongoing concerns about political polarization, misinformation, and America’s wider epidemic of gun violence. The team discuss the right’s rapid weaponization of Kirk's death, the dangers of martyrdom for extremist movements, and the urgent need for both accountability and local organizing in the face of rising authoritarianism under Trump’s second term.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Breaking News: Assassination of Charlie Kirk

[00:14–01:06]

The episode is recorded just hours after Charlie Kirk was assassinated.
At recording, the facts remain unclear, but the right is already mobilizing narratives and assigning blame.
There was also a major school shooting in Colorado that day—highlighting America’s ongoing crisis with gun violence.

2. The Impact of Charlie Kirk and the Rise of Authoritarianism

[02:38–06:41]

Chris: Argues Kirk was a crucial architect of the MAGA youth movement, radicalizing young white men and mainstreaming online and offline harassment and violence.
- “Charlie Kirk was a fucking monster and we should not sugarcoat that.” — Chris [03:26]
The right will use Kirk’s death to justify political violence and a leap, not just a creep, towards authoritarianism.
- “We are seeing National Guard troops already deployed in Washington D.C.…This is the reality that Donald Trump … has been salivating about.” — Chris [05:33]

3. Empathy, Vigilantism, and the Human Toll of Gun Violence

[06:41–11:11]

Luke and Zach stress that while Kirk’s actions have been destructive, no one deserves to die by assassination; political ends do not justify vigilantism.
Zach draws on personal experience working in gun violence prevention:
- US loopholes allow virtually untraceable, no-background-check gun sales.
- Even modest reforms (like those in Biden’s first term) have a measurable impact.

4. The Right’s Immediate Weaponization and Calls for Vengeance

[11:15–13:59]

The right-wing media ecosystem instantaneously reframed Kirk’s death as an act of war, despite knowing little about the perpetrator.
- “Literally 20 minutes later that Libs of TikTok had ‘This is war.’” — Chris [11:32]
- Jesse Waters on Fox: “We are going to avenge him.” — quoted by Zach [11:52]
The left is falsely accused by the right of being responsible for political violence, despite repeated bipartisan condemnation.

5. Misogyny, Transphobia, and Kirk’s Last Conspiracy

[13:59–15:50]

Kirk was actively spreading false and harmful claims about trans people and mass shootings at the time of his death.
- “97.7% of mass shootings … are committed by biological men.… The right have convinced people that trans people…are causing most of the mass shootings, even though it is like, for, it's like less than 1%.” — Zach [14:31]
The demonization of minority groups is a deliberate tactic used by Kirk and others to fire up their base.

6. Martyrdom and the Threat Ahead

[17:33–21:55]

Kirk has been cited by mass shooters in their manifestos—his rhetoric has concrete, deadly consequences.
The real threat isn’t just ideological—Trump and allies now have a “martyr” to justify further repression.
- “They're putting the pieces together for shit to get so much fucking worse… And now that MAGA has a martyr, this type of thing is just going to happen more often.” — Tim [21:44]

7. What Should People Do? Organize Locally

[22:15–25:03]

Hosts call for listeners to get involved at the local level, not to wait for Congress or Democratic leadership to fix things.
- “Our only choice is to get active locally. Make sure that you know who you can trust in your own neighborhood. Because when the fucking Gestapo shows up in your fucking town, you need to organize.” — Tim [24:09]
Historical perspectives: The current arc mirrors past authoritarian takeovers—action and community are necessary.

8. Social Media, Isolation, and the Spread of Rage

[27:29–32:28]

Social media’s echo chambers deepen distrust and foster radicalization, especially in isolated communities.
Personal connections, empathy, and community engagement are antidotes to extremism.
- “We have to come up with new ways to get people out of the house…and actually engaging with people, I think that would lower the temperature in certain situations.” — Zach [31:28]

9. Empathy vs. Anger: The Left’s Dilemma

[33:05–38:53]

The left organizes around empathy; the right, around anger—a dynamic that energizes the right but leaves the left vulnerable.
- “The left is empathy. We are an empathetic group of people, and we try to create a movement based on empathy. And the right is anger. And that is why we lose, because anger is so much more visceral. Empathy takes work.” — Luke [33:14]
Despite personal anger at Kirk, the hosts agree his assassination is not a victory—it's a sign of worsening division and violence.

10. Accountability, Policy, and the Democratic Response

[41:05–54:08]

The need for the left (especially white men) to take responsibility and speak out, rather than relying on Black women and other minorities.
Calls for Democratic action must go beyond rhetoric and focus on meaningful policy and accountability for past harms.
- “There have to be consequences… Like, I'm tired of Democrats just saying, like, we gotta put it in the past. We gotta, like, just move on.” — Zach [48:08]
Justice, not revenge: Policy change is the ultimate form of justice.

11. Risks for Progressive Creators

[56:01–59:40]

The assassination has shaken progressive content creators, highlighting real-world risks and the stakes in the information war.
- “We are living in a world where we're putting our lives at risk right now, speaking… my family is scared of me getting killed…for me doing this fucking podcast.” — Tim [57:00]

12. Final Reflections: Community, Resilience, and Hope

[61:19–62:54]

The hosts emphasize the need for community, local engagement, and the importance of not feeling alone in such dark times.
- “We will get through it. There are brighter days down the road a little bit. Hang in there, stick with us and we'll get there.” — Zach [62:10]
Encourage listeners to support and engage with efforts to build progressive spaces and safeguard democracy.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

“Charlie Kirk was a fucking monster and we should not sugarcoat that.” — Chris [03:26]
“Fascist movements…love a fucking martyr. And Charlie Kirk is now a martyr. Charlie Kirk's death will be used to justify political violence and state violence…” — Chris [04:18]
“I just can't feel good about is, like, going, well, does the ending meet the necessary punishment that we want to see?” — Luke [06:41]
“The only country where this happens and we've done that.” — Chris [11:11]
“Political violence is bad. Gun violence is bad.” — Chris [12:22, 12:24]
“Charlie Kirk is living his fucking dream right now. Well, he died for his dream, which is for everybody to just have fucking guns.” — Tim [13:16]
“We can't have this conversation on social media…you can't just have little clips and you're trying to own people…” — Zach [38:53]
“Justice, not revenge: Policy change is the ultimate form of justice.” — Theme repeated throughout [e.g., 48:46, 49:32]
“If you want to support us … recognize we're not doing this in a vacuum…this is dangerous.” — Tim [57:15]

Important Segment Timestamps

[00:14] — Breaking news about the Kirk assassination and context
[02:38] — Chris breaks down Kirk’s impact on MAGA youth and dangers of martyrdom
[11:32] — Right-wing influencers instantly call the assassination “war” and push vengeance
[13:16] — Tim and Chris contextualize the event within America’s gun laws/culture
[22:15] — Calls for local organizing and anti-fascist community-building
[33:14] — Empathy vs. anger: Why the left is at a disadvantage
[41:05] — The need for white men on the left to show up and the importance of accountability
[57:00] — Dangers for progressive creators in the current climate
[61:19] — Final messages of solidarity, community, and hope

Tone & Style

Raw, unfiltered, and emotionally charged, but underpinned by honesty, urgency, and a deep sense of community purpose. The hosts rely on blunt language, gallows humor, and personal anecdotes to express both their horror at current events and their determination to fight for a more just and peaceful America.

Key Takeaways

The assassination of Charlie Kirk is a watershed moment in American political violence—one likely to be exploited to justify further authoritarian measures.
Gun violence remains a core, bipartisan crisis, yet polarization and misinformation obstruct meaningful reform.
The right’s rapid, coordinated messaging weaponizes tragedy; the left struggles for an empathetic, solutions-focused response.
Empathy must coexist with accountability and local action; organizing offline is as critical as countering digital misinformation.
The future depends on broadening the movement and refusing to let despair or rage sink into apathy—there is still hope for collective action.

This summary is intended for listeners seeking depth, context, and a full understanding of the episode’s urgent, unvarnished conversation about the dangers and opportunities facing American democracy in 2025.

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Transcript

Tim (0:00)

Foreign.

Zach (0:14)

Hey everybody, welcome back to the Find out podcast. You're getting actually the second episode that we taped today. We were hoping to speak with the new senate candidate in Maine, Dan Cleveland, who's also the owner of the Main Beer Company. But in light of the breaking news tonight, we decided to shelve that episode until Tuesday because there's obviously huge, huge breaking news happening this evening in which right wing commentator and Turning Points USA founder executive director Charlie Kirk was assassinated this afternoon by a gunman that it's still a little unclear at this hour. It's 8:42 Eastern whether they have the right person.

Chris (0:56)

They don't. They, Cash Patel said they don't.

Zach (0:58)

Okay.

Luke (0:58)

No, they did. No, they did. That's, that was earlier. Now I think they do have the right, they say they have the right person reports. Yeah. Yeah. Nothing official.

Zach (1:06)

We do not know who this person anything about may know. No, you may know by the time you hear this in the morning, Thursday morning. But also we, we have to, we cannot forget there was also a school shooting today in Colorado. And our understanding is that there are three people in critical condition. No, no loss of life thankfully so far. But obviously this has lit a match in the country with people talking about this. And I think what, what we're here to do is one, just sort of talk it out because we know that, you know, you count on us to be there every Tuesday and Thursday and so that's what we're doing. But it's also important to talk about this horrific scourge of gun violence and also this, this horrific scourge of right wing media spinning up people very dangerously before we even hear who this person is. And I think so we are going to try to navigate this over the next 30, 45 minutes. Unfortunately, I don't think we're gonna have as many laughs as we normally do. But it's important to talk about this. So guys, and I want to go to Chris first because Chris has a lot of experience with these right wing radical groups that, you know, prey on breaking news to distort stories and things. So Chris, what, what are you thinking right now after seeing such a display as this was today?

Tim (2:38)

Yeah. So that the people listening to this know I've only gotten to talk to these gentlemen for like two minutes before we hit hit record since this news really broke. In short, things are going to get a lot worse before they get better. I, I am someone who has not just been studying misinformation, disinformation, radicalization and extremism for nearly 10 years now. I'm someone who has been studying Charlie Kirk, Turning Point usa, and the effect that that has had on our country and our politics as a whole. Charlie Kirk is as, as Donald Trump's immediate response to the assassination indicates, tremendously important to the building of the MAGA movement. He is a very large part of the reason why so many young white men are leaving college and ending up back in their parents bedroom, seething, angry, pissed off and lashing out both online and in person, committing, you know, acts of violence in the real world and horrific, horrific harassment in online environments, whether that's, you know, in video games or social media, you know, or hacking into people's phones and swatting people. Charlie Kirk was a fucking monster and we should not sugarcoat that. Charlie Kirk is part of the reason that Americans, particularly the, the youngest Americans, who I, as an elder, millennial, you know, used to look at Gen Z as like, they're going to be the ones to save us. They're growing up so much more educated and with greater access to the world than we ever had. Charlie Kirk is the reason for so much of the regression that we have seen culturally here in the United States and in our politics. With all of that said, fascist movements, authoritarian movements, love a fucking martyr. And Charlie Kirk is now a martyr. Charlie Kirk's death will be used to justify political violence and state violence against American citizens. We, we, we are living in the reality that Donald Trump, the man who, who Charlie Kirk, bussed hundreds of people from around the country to Washington D.C. to help invade the United States Capitol and commit an insurrection with the attempt to end our democracy. Charlie Kirk paid for that. He led that. He did that. Charlie Kirk led insurrectionists who beat cops relentlessly for hours on January 6. He paid for that. He made that happen. He is now their martyr. Donald Trump pardoned all of those people. We have people who committed acts of violence against cops, got pardoned and now they have a martyr. We are going to see an explosion of violence in this country. I am not going to sugarcoat this. Not, not here to make you feel better. I'm going to tell you the reality. We are on the precipice of a massive step forward in Donald Trump's administration's authoritarian creep. It is going from a creep to a leap. We are seeing National Guard troops already deployed in Washington D.C. trump has been salivating about deploying into Chicago. Now he has the opportunity. In September. The fall semester has begun. There are going to be campus protests against the genocide in Gaza. Donald Trump has everything that he needs to start enacting the state violence that guys like Stephen Miller wanted to see back in 2017.

Tim (22:15)

I just know my angel. I mean, so my, my video that no one's gotten a chance to see because I just fucking posted it and it's too fucking long. It won't show up in your fiends is people need to start getting locally organized, right? Like I, I run a non profit called Veterans Fighting Fascism. The big project of Veterans Fighting Fascism is getting people to start anti fascist book clubs. We are in the midst of an authoritarian takeover. Like I, I, I feel like people who watch MSNBC and have, have been watching Nicole Wallace whose show I, you know, used to be on all the time, or Rachel Maddow talking about like fascism, authoritarianism and bringing on all these historians, they, I feel like they were warned too much and they became desensitized to it. But if you go and you sit and you, and you read the books and you sit down and you have the time to really absorb them, you see that we are, we are going through a predictable arc of history. This has happened before. History doesn't repeat, but it often echoes, right? We know what's going to happen next. The, this political assassination will be used to justify state violence against citizens. There's going to be a tit for tat of assassinations in this fucking country. I'm sorry if people don't believe this. This is the reality we live in now. This is what history says will happen. We are going to see troops in the streets of more cities. We are going to see ICE and other federal agents and local law enforcement getting more aggressive with American citizens. So we can't sit around and hope that Congress is going to save us. Republicans control the whole fucking federal government right now. Our only choice is to get active locally. Make sure that you know who you can trust in your own neighborhood. Because when the fucking Gestapo shows up in your fucking town, you need to organize. You need to be ready. You need to know where you're going to get your basic essentials. This might sound fucking hysterical, but put yourself back in the mindset that you had in October of 2024 and think, try to try to put yourself in the mind of the person that you were last October and imagine me saying there are going to be troops, federalized troops from Republican states going into blue cities. You would have thought I was fucking crazy. Well, guess what? I fucking wrote that down. And I was training people on the future that was going to come. And half the people, more than half the people that I put this fucking scenario in front of were like, no fucking way. This is, this is unrealistic. This shit is predictable. If you just read about history.

Tim (35:14)

I just heard him on CNN say that again, that he was like his son. But Joe Walsh has changed. And he recognized that the person that Joe Walsh used to be didn't want debate, didn't want to spread political ideas. He wanted to get in people's faces and hurt them. He wanted to agitate them, to hurt their fucking feelings. And Charlie Kirk died that person. That is who Charlie Kirk was when he was alive, and that is who he should be remembered as. He should be remembered not as a political thinker, as a political figure, as a movement builder. He should be remembered as someone who is destructive to American democracy, to decency, and as someone who literally paid to try to end our fucking democracy by taking maga fucking Morons from all around this country putting them on buses and sending them to attack fucking cops and beat them with, with American flags with blue fucking stripes on them. Charlie Kirk was a piece of shit. And our country is worse off because of him. And we will not recover because now he is fucking gone. Him dying, not a good thing. Him like, as much as I fucking hate him, him dying is not a good thing. It is just a point in a line in the history of America getting more unsafe and more extreme and more divided because characters like him, until today never had to fucking pay a price for any of the harm that they caused to any vulnerable, vulnerable communities. There are trans people, there are black people, there are brown people who are dead today because Charlie Kirk evangelized hate for ten fucking years. And I am not, I am not fucking sorry for Charlie Kirk. I'm sorry for his family. I'm sorry for anyone who, who had no choice but to love him. I'm sorry for his kid, I'm sorry for his wife. But that man is part of the reason that we're in this mess today where the President is fucking bulldozing through our constitutional rights, where our President is allowing our fucking NATO allies to have drones flying into their country, where our fucking allies in Ukraine have lost hundreds of thousands of fucking citizens because Charlie Kirk wanted to be a fucking famous fucking influencer. Because, I don't know, someone probably bullied him in high school and he just wanted to create a movement of angry young men who would one day maybe become mass shooters who would maybe fucking go out and, and abuse a fucking woman. That man was a fucking cancer on the United States. And, and it sucks that we're here at night as we're recording this, spending our fucking time. Not, not because, not because Charlie was a great man, but because his toxicity was so fucking influential that we are paying the price that we have no choice but to spend our fucking time talking about the damage that is coming because of his fucking death. It sucks. This is a shit everything about it situation.