Morning Note

Turning Point USA issued a public invitation to Charlie Kirk’s funeral over the weekend, announcing that the service will take place at the Arizona Cardinals’ stadium on Sunday, September 21st.

“Join us in celebrating the remarkable life and enduring legacy of Charlie Kirk, an American legend,” the group wrote on X. It included a link to fightforcharlie.com, the organization’s full website dedicated to the service.

“Charlie Kirk’s life was a testament to faith, courage, and conviction,” the home page reads. “From his earliest days, he believed America was worth fighting for, and he dedicated every moment of his 31 years to that cause… Charlie’s life was short, but it was full. It was defined by truth, anchored in faith, and devoted to the country he loved. His legacy will endure for generations.”

Donald Trump plans to attend the service.

Read more.

JD Vance is hosting today’s episode of The Charlie Kirk Show. 

The vice president announced his plan in a Sunday X post, sharing an image of his studio setup and a link to the broadcast. It will air at noon Eastern Time.

Vance and Kirk were close for years. The VP shared a lengthy tribute to the Turning Point USA founder on the day of his killing, remembering his friend as one of the most influential members of Donald Trump’s inner circle and one of the key reasons the president chose him as his 2024 running mate. 

"When I became the VP nominee—something Charlie advocated for both in public and private—Charlie was there for me… Charlie was constantly calling and texting, checking on our family and offering guidance and prayers," he wrote.

A group of Kirk’s friends and producers hosted his show from its regular Arizona studio on Friday. They left his chair empty.

Read more.

The Trump administration is asking Congress to approve an additional $58 million for security following the assassination of Charlie Kirk. The money would go toward protecting the executive and judicial branches.

The funding boost has early bipartisan support, with Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and James Lankford (R-OK) each endorsing it on Sunday. 

“When we’re talking about protecting judges and protecting individuals, it’s not just their personal safety. It is really declaring to the nation that we believe that these tasks are hard, that there should be intense debate, that we have very different perspectives,” Lankford said on Face the Nation.

The White House reportedly also supports increasing funding to protect members of Congress, but is deferring to the legislative branch on creating a proposal. 

Read more.

Western governments have spent years lecturing the world about the moral necessity of standing with Ukraine. They have not practiced what they’ve preached. Instead, they’ve embraced standing with Ukraine only when it’s convenient by continuing to purchase Russian oil.

Think about the irony of that approach. Sure, Europe has dumped plenty of money into Ukraine’s war efforts, but they’ve also supported Vladimir Putin’s military by continuing to funnel fortunes into Russia’s economy. They have not put their money where their mouths are.

Donald Trump called out this hypocrisy on Saturday, writing on Truth Social that NATO’s commitment to winning the war “has been far less than 100%" and the purchase of Russian oil by some members of the alliance is “shocking.”

“It greatly weakens your negotiating position, and bargaining power, over Russia,” he said.

Will these Russia-funding purported Ukraine allies change their ways? Their next move will show whether they actually care about this “fight for democracy” or if the entire thing is a big charade. 

Read more.

Michelle Wylie got married in 2021. The wedding was a huge success, and she couldn’t wait to see the big day’s photos. Once she did, she noticed something bizarre: a complete stranger was in the crowd. 

How could that happen? Who was this man? Four years later, Wylie finally has answers. 

Social media helped the perplexed bride identify the mysterious intruder last week, exposing him as a regular gentleman named Andrew Helliman.

What was Helliman doing there? Was he a stalker or a freeloader looking to cash in on a good time? Not at all. He simply showed up for the wrong wedding. 

Read this unusual story’s details here.

There are times when being a Christian is easy. There’s nothing challenging about unwrapping presents on Christmas morning or hunting chocolate-filled eggs during Easter. In other moments, keeping the faith requires tremendous resolve. This weekend was one of those.

The world met Tyler Robinson on Friday. Rage, disgust, and hate were natural human reactions. We don’t blame you if seeing the unapologetic-looking accused murderer’s mugshot made your blood boil. He’s an easy figure to loathe.

How could anyone kill Charlie Kirk? Why would Robinson have done that? The longer you stare into his eyes, the easier it is to become filled with fury. We get it. We feel it too. 

Amid our grief, the question of how we should respond has quickly emerged. Plenty of options exist. Many are dark. Those outraged by the assassination could choose a path of vengeance. An eye for an eye. They could riot and set things on fire. Maybe this means war.

Charlie would not support those choices. The young father built his entire public image around the idea that debate, not violence, is the way to resolve our differences. He was right. Taking up arms against those with opposing views is an immoral act of intellectual surrender, even if the other side swung first. The practice has no place in our country, as we all just witnessed.

This idea is not a Morning Note original. It comes from the book Kirk spoke about more than any other: the Bible. During his arrest at the hands of Pontius Pilate, Jesus refused to let his disciples defend him with force, even though he knew of the brutal execution that awaited him. That is the most revolutionary message of peace in human history. The Son of God easily could have freed himself from the Roman soldiers’ grasp. He could have vanquished his captors merely by looking at them. But he didn’t. Because violence is wrong. The American right should remember this and shed no blood in Charlie’s name. 

What should we do instead? This is where our faith is really tested. Give Luke 6:27–28 a read. Its words are below, spoken from Jesus’s lips.

"But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.”

That’s pretty intense. Rather than print photos of Robinson’s mugshot, pin them to dart boards, and fire away, God commands us to love, bless, and pray for the soon-to-be-charged killer. Let that sink in. It’s as radical a command as you’ll ever hear. 

Is following it even possible? Achieving such a level of grace goes completely against how our species is wired. It’s hard to prevent our anger from getting the best of us. That’s why we need God. The only way to prevent this catastrophe from tearing our nation apart will come from the supernatural. A supernatural intervention. 

Pray we get one. It will help our country more than we know.