President Donald J. Trump, still reeling from the shock of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination, reportedly privately told a CNBC host Thursday morning that he believed the 31-year-old could have someday become president.
Joe Kernen, longtime host of Squawk Box, revealed that Trump phoned him off-air to offer congratulations on the show’s 30th anniversary.
The president, Kernen said, quickly turned the conversation to the events of the past 24 hours, reflecting on the loss of Kirk, a close political ally and founder of the right-wing student group Turning Point USA.
“[When] I left the set […] President Trump actually called in, and I figured I’d take that call. ‘Happy anniversary. Happy 30 years,’” Kernen recounted. “He loves what we do. Yeah, loves what we do every morning. Said, make sure you tell Becky [Quick] and Andrew [Ross Sorkin] that he loves what you do.”
The mood soon shifted. Trump, according to Kernen, spoke at length about Kirk, who was shot Wednesday while speaking to students at Utah Valley University. “And he’s devastated about Charlie Kirk and said that what a guy, what a great individual,” Kernen said. “And he said he helped him greatly in the last election and thinks that Charlie Kirk could have been president some day, he was such a talented guy.”
Trump’s praise for Kirk underscores the political weight the young activist carried within conservative circles. Kirk had become a fixture on college campuses across the country, building Turning Point USA into a grassroots powerhouse and earning a reputation as a sharp defender of Trump-era populism.
He was also a friend of the president’s sons and a trusted ally during Trump’s 2024 campaign.
Kernen said Trump framed Kirk’s death not only as a personal tragedy but as a moment for national reflection. “Then he went on to say the country will heal, he’s focused on what he has been focused on and he says ‘I’m focused on winning, if the country wins and if I do everything I can to help the country win, that we’re all going to be able to come together again.’”
Publicly, Trump moved swiftly to honor Kirk’s memory. On Truth Social, he hailed him as “The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk” and directed that flags be lowered to half-mast until Sunday.
The president also fielded condolence calls from across the media spectrum. During a conversation late Wednesday with MSNBC’s Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough, Trump credited Kirk with mobilizing young voters, a constituency that proved critical to Trump’s victory in 2024.
Kirk’s sudden loss leaves a visible void in the conservative movement. For Trump, it is the passing of not only a loyal supporter but a potential future leader. “What a guy, what a great individual,” Trump repeated, according to Kernen. In the president’s eyes, Kirk’s trajectory pointed toward the highest office in the land — a promise that now will remain unrealized.
[READ MORE: Trump To Honor Kirk With Presidential Medal Of Freedom]
