Ben Shapiro delivered a fiery address Thursday at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest conference, sharply criticizing fellow conservatives and even close allies as he warned that the movement faces internal danger from what he described as dishonesty and conspiracism.
In remarks that quickly drew attention, Shapiro accused longtime media figures, including Megyn Kelly and Tucker Carlson, of failing to meet what he called a moral obligation to forcefully condemn Candace Owens’ conspiracy theories surrounding the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.
Shapiro said the conservative movement is “in danger from charlatans who claim to speak in the name of principle but actually traffic in conspiracism and dishonesty,” arguing that some high-profile figures have remained silent when they should have spoken out. He did not mince words, calling such figures “frauds” and “grifters” who do not deserve the audience’s attention.
A central focus of Shapiro’s remarks was Owens’ claims about Kirk’s murder, which Shapiro labeled “absolutely baseless trash.” He said Owens had implicated a wide range of actors, including French intelligence, Mossad, and members of TPUSA, either in the killing or in an alleged coverup. Shapiro said those accusations were not only unfounded but deeply harmful, particularly to Kirk’s family.
According to Shapiro, Erika Kirk and Turning Point USA should never have been forced to defend themselves against what he called “specious and evil attacks,” especially during a time of mourning. He emphasized that anyone who refused to clearly condemn Owens’ accusations was guilty of cowardice, repeating the charge for emphasis. Shapiro argued that remaining silent while such claims circulate publicly amounts to moral failure, particularly when the accusations have persisted for years.
Shapiro also rejected the idea that personal relationships excuse silence. He said friendship with public figures who engage in what he called evil conduct is no justification for refusing to speak out. He singled out Carlson by name, saying that Carlson’s status or influence was not an excuse for avoiding condemnation of Owens’ attacks on TPUSA.
He then turned his attention to Megyn Kelly, whom he described as a friend, but accused her of shying away from condemning Owens by emphasizing her personal circumstances, including that she is a young mother. Shapiro dismissed that reasoning outright, saying motherhood has no bearing on whether accusations are right or wrong. He cited Kelly’s recent comments in which she said her goal was to understand where Owens was coming from and that she saw no purpose in inserting herself on one side of the dispute.
Shapiro called that position a moral and logical absurdity, insisting there is only one moral side: that of Erika Kirk, whom he described as a widow with two children whose husband was shot live on camera.
Shapiro concluded that friendship with someone accusing TPUSA of a coverup is no excuse for silence, reiterating that moral clarity demands speaking out.
Kelly responded swiftly on social media, pushing back against Shapiro’s remarks. She wrote that Shapiro and Bari Weiss had launched a joint attack on her without understanding what had been happening behind the scenes for months. Kelly suggested they should have checked with Turning Point USA and Erika Kirk first and said she was embarrassed for them, signaling that the public dispute among prominent conservative voices is far from settled.
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