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Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, dismissed today’s General Assembly conference on the question of Palestine as a “charade,” confirming Israel will boycott the meeting and warning countries moving toward recognition of a Palestinian state that there will be “consequences.”

Speaking to reporters at U.N. headquarters just ahead of a high-level session on implementing a two-state solution, Danon said Israel would not engage in the debate, accusing supporters of recognition of “supporting terrorism rather than promoting peace.”

“We will not participate in this charade. We will not enter the GA Hall, and we will not take part,” he told reporters.

France pledged to recognize a Palestinian state at the General Assembly on Tuesday, joining a slew of Israel’s longtime allies who have done so in recent months. 

MACRON STAKES ANTI-TRUMP GLOBAL ROLE WITH GAZA INITIATIVE AT UN SUMMIT

France became the first major Western nuclear power and a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council from the G7 to formally recognize Palestine.

Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom announced their support on Sunday. Norway, Spain, Portugal and Ireland have done so in recent months. They cited Israeli settlement expansion and settler violence.

“They feel they are doing something, but they are not promoting peace. On the contrary, they are supporting terrorism,” Danon said of the nations who recognized Palestine. 

“There will be consequences for that,” he promised.

Danon did not define the consequences but did not rule out Israel extending its rule to parts of the West Bank.

It’s a “discussion for the government” after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with President Donald Trump on Sept. 29.

Danon said Israel is coordinating its response with the U.S. to allies recognizing Palestine — and that Washington would also join the boycott of Monday’s General Assembly meeting on implementing a two-state solution.

“Nothing justifies the ongoing war in Gaza,” French President Emmanuel Macron said at the meeting. “Everything compels us to definitively end it.”

UK, CANADA, AUSTRALIA RECOGNIZE PALESTINIAN STATE; NETANYAHU VOWS ‘IT WILL NOT HAPPEN’

Macron went on: “The time has come to no longer talk about the existence of Israel — it’s self-evident. The time has come to do justice to the Palestinians, to recognize the state of Palestine.”

“We must do this to save lives.”

Hamas has drafted a letter to President Donald Trump, asking the commander-in-chief to guarantee a 60-day cease-fire in exchange for the release of half of the hostages still in captivity, Fox News has learned.

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Trump has seemingly grown frustrated at the stalled-out peace effort that has left some 40 Israelis at the hands of Hamas for nearly two years. 

Trump is planning to meet with a group of Arab leaders on Tuesday, where they are expected to implore him to push Netanyahu to end the war in Gaza.

The White House claimed that President Donald Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, never accepted money in cash from undercover FBI agents amid reports that the Justice Department recently closed an investigation into Homan for potential bribery. 

The White House’s remarks come after MSNBC reported Saturday that Homan allegedly took $50,000 in cash in September 2024 from undercover FBI agents he believed were business executives after suggesting he could help them secure government contracts with a second Trump administration. 

Federal law enforcement MSNBC reported that the investigation into Homan closed “in recent weeks,” after FBI Director Kash Patel asked for an update on the probe. 

BORDER CZAR TOM HOMAN CALLS OUT MEDIA, REPORTERS ACCUSING ICE AGENTS OF RACIAL PROFILING

MSNBC reported that video footage depicts Homan accepting the cash. However, the White House now says that Homan never even accepted the money in the first place, and said that Trump did not ask the Justice Department to shutter the probe. 

“Mr. Homan never took the $50,000 that you’re referring to, so you should get your facts straight, number one,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Monday. “Number two, this was another example of the weaponization of the Biden Department of Justice against one of President Trump’s strongest and most vocal supporters in the midst of a presidential campaign, you had FBI agents going undercover to try and entrap one of the president’s top allies and supporters, someone who they knew very well would be taking a government position months later, Mr. Homan did absolutely nothing wrong.” 

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The White House did not provide additional comment to Fox News Digital. 

Previously, Trump administration officials have refrained from saying Homan never accepted the cash, and instead, said that there was no evidence of illegal activity. 

“This matter originated under the previous administration and was subjected to a full review by FBI agents and Justice Department prosecutors. They found no credible evidence of any criminal wrongdoing. The Department’s resources must remain focused on real threats to the American people, not baseless investigations. As a result, the investigation has been closed,” Patel and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement to Fox News Digital. 

BORDER CZAR TOM HOMAN’S MESSAGE TO ANTI-ICE PROTESTERS: ‘YOU WANT SOME? COME GET SOME’

Additionally, the White House said that the investigation was politically motivated and said that it was an example of Trump allies being targeted. 

“This blatantly political investigation, which found no evidence of illegal activity, is yet another example of how the Biden Department of Justice was using its resources to target President Trump’s allies rather than investigate real criminals and the millions of illegal aliens who flooded our country,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “Tom Homan is a career law enforcement officer and lifelong public servant who is doing a phenomenal job on behalf of President Trump and the country.”

The number-two Democrat in the Senate joined with a high-profile member of the Republican caucus, among others, to launch a bill protecting more than a quarter of a million people who arrived in the U.S. as children of visa-holding foreign nationals.

Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin, D-Ill., who co-authored the original, ultimately unsuccessful DREAM Act with the late Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, announced Monday that he and several lawmakers would lead the America’s CHILDREN Act to protect so-called Dreamers from deportation by the Trump administration.

The acronym formally stands for “America’s Cultivation of Hope and Inclusion for Long-term Dependents Raised and Educated Natively Act.”

Durbin was joined by Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., in the upper chamber, to support the newest iteration of legislation offering a “pathway to citizenship” for long-term U.S. residents who were dependents of migrant parents.

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“Dreamers are some of the hardest working people I’ve met, and as American as all of us,” Durbin said in a statement.

“Their patriotism and dedication to our country inspires me, fuels our economy, and makes our nation stronger. Documented Dreamers are young people brought to the United States lawfully, but they face the risk of losing their status due to backlogs in our outdated immigration system.”

The Illinois Democrat, whose state has clashed with President Donald Trump over his mass deportation agenda, said the administration has made legal immigration “all but impossible” and that the bipartisan nature of the bill shows the American people demand solutions.

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Dreamers can remain a dependent of a migrant worker until they are 21, according to Rep. Deborah Ross, D-N.C., who described the intended beneficiaries of the American CHILDREN Act in a previous attempt to pass similar legislation.

“Sadly, due to decades-long backlogs and problems with the Child Status Protection Act, many of these young adults turn 21 before a visa number for a green card finally becomes available,” said Ross, who also co-sponsored the current bill.

Padilla, who was detained by federal agents when he disrupted a briefing by DHS Secretary Kristi Noem in California earlier this year, said the people described in the bill are “Americans in every way except one – their parents’ green card is tied up in red tape.”

Paul, along with Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Illinois — the two most prominent Republican co-sponsors — said Dreamers are contributing members of their communities and the U.S. economy.

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“They shouldn’t be penalized by the government’s failures in addressing green card backlogs. The America’s Children Act provides targeted relief for these children of merit-based immigrants who are at risk of ‘aging out’ of their lawful immigration status, and I’m pleased to join Sen. Padilla in introducing this bill,” Paul said in a statement.

A handful of other Republicans signed onto the bill, including Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska – a frequent Trump critic – along with Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, John Rutherford of Florida; Sens. John Curtis of Utah, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s attempt to block authorities from wearing masks during immigration enforcement operations is facing legal scrutiny as critics push back on the governor’s effort to assert power over federal officers.

Newsom, a Democrat, signed a bill over the weekend that bans state and federal law enforcement from wearing masks on the job, a move that Trump administration officials decried as illegal and vowed to ignore. The bill is set to take effect in January. 

“We don’t need to abide by this garbage,” a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said on social media.

NEWSOM BANS LAW ENFORCEMENT FROM WEARING MASKS, TAUNTS ICE AGENTS: ‘WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF?’

Acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli of the Central District of California said on “Fox & Friends” on Monday he did not think Newsom’s bill was enforceable. Essayli, who has been in lockstep with the Trump administration on its aggressive immigration enforcement tactics in California, predicted Newsom would sue.

“I think what the governor might do is he might file a lawsuit,” Essayli said. “He might run to a judge to try to get some sort of order, but we’re very confident. The State of California does not and cannot have jurisdiction.”

Newsom’s measure was part of a string of bills the governor signed to counteract the Trump administration, which has, since the summer, been carrying out controversial immigration raids across California. The Supreme Court recently temporarily cleared the way for ICE authorities to continue conducting immigration stops at farms, car washes and other places where they suspect illegal immigrants might be. But the high court did not weigh in on the authorities’ garb, which at times has included identity-concealing masks and neck gaiters, according to videos.

“Unmarked cars, people in masks, people quite literally disappearing, no due process, no rights,” Newsom said, adding, “I’ll be signing a bill, the first in the nation, saying, ‘Enough, ICE, unmask, what are you afraid of?’”

LOS ANGELES COUNTY PUSHES TO PROHIBIT LAW ENFORCEMENT FROM HIDING THEIR IDENTITIES WHILE ON THE JOB

California-based attorney Neama Rahmani, a former federal prosecutor, told Fox News Digital that if courts end up weighing in on Newsom’s bill, they will likely raise the separation of powers and the supremacy clause, the part of the Constitution that says federal law trumps state law.

Rahmani said that while states can impose “reasonable restrictions” on federal law enforcement, such as traffic violations, dictating what the officers wear is different.

“You have the state imposing restrictions on the federal government, and those restrictions can really unduly interfere with their law enforcement functions, right?” Rahmani said. “The state is saying that unmasking these federal officials is necessary to restore public trust, but really it’s a safety issue, right? They can be doxed. Their families can be put at risk, so I can easily see this specific regulation being struck down by the courts.”

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Essayli accused the governor of using what he described as a “silly” bill to try to “inflame the public.”

“You have this narrative that people are out there being kidnapped. It’s not true,” Essayli said. “They’re federal agents. They’re acting under federal law, and if he doesn’t like it he should change the law.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., wants to jam Senate Democrats with the GOP’s short-term funding extension, but so far they aren’t ready to play ball.

Republicans and Democrats in the upper chamber blocked dueling continuing resolutions (CRs) from both parties last week and have now left Washington, D.C., until Sept. 29, effectively giving lawmakers in the upper chamber only two working days before the midnight deadline on Sept. 30.

Both sides are at an impasse. Senate Republicans argue that the “clean” extension, which would last until Nov. 21 and lacks any partisan policy riders, is everything Democrats dreamed of when they controlled the upper chamber.

TRUMP-APPROVED PLAN TO AVERT GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN SCUTTLED BY SENATE

Senate Democrats led by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., however, argue that they want a seat at the negotiating table and are adamant that expiring Obamacare premium subsidies must be dealt with now, rather than at the end of the year.

“They’re trying to use what they think is leverage to get a bunch of stuff done,” Thune said. “It’s never going to happen. I mean, can you imagine anything in that bill that they sent that we voted down today, passing in the Republican House of Representatives? Absolutely not. It’s just not serious.”

Democrats’ proposal included a permanent extension to the expiring Obamacare subsidies, clawbacks of canceled funding for NPR and PBS, and it would have repealed the healthcare provisions in President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” — policy that would reverse the nearly $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts while also getting rid of the $50 billion rural hospital fund.

“They’re not being serious,” Thune said. “This is just a cold-blooded partisan political attempt to try and score political points with a left-wing base.”

Though he has not taken the option off the table, it’s unlikely that Thune would cut this recess short. Instead, he wants to use the impending deadline to back Senate Democrats into a corner. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., played into that strategy, too, when he announced that the House would not return until after the funding deadline.

Thune is ready to bring the same CR passed by House Republicans last week to the floor.

SENATE REPUBLICANS BLOCK DEMOCRATS’ ‘FILTHY’ COUNTEROFFER AS SHUTDOWN DEADLINE LOOMS

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., railed against the likelihood that lawmakers wouldn’t return to Capitol Hill until the deadline was directly on them.

“The Republicans want to shut down,” he said. “A) they refuse to negotiate, and B) they’re sending us home for the week before the government shuts down. So you know this, this seems like a planned shutdown. As far as I can tell, there’s zero effort, zero effort by Republicans to try to solve this problem.”

Schumer and Democrats have pinned the blame on Trump and argue that his insistence that Thune only needs Republican votes was a sign that Democrats should be cut out of the process. Thune will need Democratic votes to advance through the 60-vote filibuster threshold in the Senate.

The top Senate Democrat hoped Thune and Republicans would “now see that the only way to avoid a shutdown is negotiate with Democrats.”

“We’re saying clearly, let’s sit down. Let’s figure this out,” Schumer said. “But Republicans have now left town with no sign they want to avoid a shutdown in a week. They left town. Donald Trump is the shutdown president and Senate Republicans are following him over the cliff.”

THUNE PANS DEMOCRATS’ SHUTDOWN STANCE AS ‘BORDERLINE PATHOLOGICAL,’ ‘LIKE A DISEASE’

Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., also sent a letter on Saturday to Trump demanding a meeting, where the pair charged that “Republicans would bear the responsibility” of a partial shutdown.

“As a result, it is now your obligation to meet with us directly to reach an agreement to keep the government open and address the Republican healthcare crisis,” they wrote.

Trump said on Saturday that he would “love to meet with them, but I don’t think it’s going to have any impact.”

A day before, he didn’t appear optimistic that a shutdown could be averted.

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“I think we could very well end up with a closed country for a period of time,” Trump said.

Thune may have defections within his own ranks to contend with, too. Sens. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, voted against the GOP’s bill. Only Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., crossed the aisle to support it.

Paul’s vote against the bill wasn’t a surprise. However, Murkowski, who is an appropriator, contended that she wanted a better bill on the floor than the one presented by Republicans and charged that the back-to-back failures of both bills was a “messaging exercise.”

“I want to project a message of something that can actually get us through this impasse,” she said. “And so my message is a short-term CR that also addresses three past appropriations bills that we’ve already done. We should include those. We should include a short-term fix of the premium tax credits.” 

Republican Jack Ciattarelli said it was “wrong” for Democrat Rep. Mikie Sherrill to criticize Charlie Kirk after voting “yes” on a U.S. House resolution condemning his assassination — a clash that escalated when Sherrill invoked Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension over remarks about Kirk during their first debate Sunday.

During their first debate of the general election in Lawrenceville, N.J., on Sunday, moderators asked the candidates if they would support legislation designating political violence as a hate crime in the state of New Jersey. 

“My opponent on Friday went down to Washington, voted yes on a resolution to celebrate Charlie Kirk’s life, but then within minutes sent out a statement that basically condemned him. I think that was wrong,” Jack Ciattarelli said, while affirming his support for the New Jersey bill. 

When pressed about her disagreement with Kirk, Sherrill said, “I think it’s fair to have free speech, but I think it should go to everyone, to Jimmy Kimmel and to myself as well.”

WATCH: LAWMAKERS WRESTLE WITH HOW TO APPROACH HATEFUL POLITICAL RHETORIC IN WAKE OF KIRK ASSASSINATION

ABC on Thursday suspended the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” host indefinitely following controversial comments he made about Kirk’s assassination. 

58 HOUSE DEMS VOTE AGAINST RESOLUTION HONORING ‘LIFE AND LEGACY’ OF CHARLIE KIRK

Questions about political violence seeped onto the New Jersey gubernatorial debate stage on Sunday night as mourners gathered more than 2,000 miles away to honor the life and legacy of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk. 

After voting “yes” on the resolution condemning Kirk’s assassination, Sherrill released a statement criticizing Kirk’s character. 

“Charlie Kirk was advocating for a Christian nationalist government and to roll back the rights of women and Black people — this flies in the face of every value I hold dear and that I fight for. But the Constitution protects free speech, even for those I vehemently oppose,” she said. 

While ripping his opponent for her comments, Ciattarelli also criticized Sherrill for not answering the moderator’s question about the state legislation. 

“My direct answer is I voted to protect free speech. I voted to end political violence. I also think it’s fair, Jack, to speak up when you disagree with something,” Sherrill said. 

“In this nation, we should be able to have free speech,” Sherrill said. “I vow to defend and fight for free speech my entire life, but it should never devolve into political violence.”

Kirk’s assassination on Utah Valley University’s campus has reignited a fierce debate about the rise of political violence in the United States. 

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“I think it is the responsibility of any public official and candidate for office to engage in rhetoric that doesn’t divide us,” Ciattarelli said Sunday. “My campaign has been about uniting us, not dividing us. I do think we need to take down the temperature a whole lot.”

FIRST ON FOX: A Democratic hopeful running for U.S. Senate is building a brand of civility in politics, but four years ago he argued that “radicalized White men” were the nation’s greatest domestic terrorist threat.

Texas state Rep. Jame Talarico, D-Texas, threw his hat into the Democratic primary in the Lone Star State to run against former Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas. Talarico launched his campaign earlier this month with a message that he wanted to restore unity and quiet the divisive noise that comes from social media and cable news.

Both are vying for the Democratic nomination to run for Sen. John Cornyn’s, R-Texas, seat. Cornyn is currently engaged in a tough primary challenge against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

RISING DEMOCRAT STAR JAMES TALARICO JUMPS INTO KEY SENATE RACE IN TEXAS

In the wake of the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, Talarico condemned his murder and, despite a wide difference in their politics, said he found a middle ground in their shared faith.

“I am tired of being pitted against my neighbor,” Talarico said in the hours following the news of Kirk’s death. “I am tired of being told to hate my neighbor. People across the political spectrum in this state and in this country are hungry for a different kind of politics, not a politics of fear, not a politics of hate, not a politics of violence, but a politics of love, a love that can heal what’s broken in this country.”

But four years earlier, he was using fiery rhetoric online.

“Black Americans in a church. Mexican Americans in a store. Asian Americans in a spa,” Talarico said.

“Radicalized White men are the greatest domestic terrorist threat in our country,” he continued.

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Talarico’s post that day was in response to a mass shooting at three spas in Atlanta on March 16, 2021, by suspect Robert Aaron Long that left eight people dead.

He went on to write in the same thread, “As a White man, I’m susceptible to the same radicalization,” and he said he planned to draft and file diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) legislation in the Texas legislature.

Joanna Rodriguez, a spokesperson for the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), charged that “in the last few years, Democrat James Talarico has falsely accused Republicans of trying to create an ‘authoritarian, Christian Nationalist state’ and a ‘Christofascist theocracy.’”

“He is one of many extremist, far-left Democrats that will vilify Republicans at any cost because it gets him praise from the woke mob and Texas voters will never elect him to statewide office because of it,” she said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

JT Ennis, a campaign spokesperson for Talarico, fired back, “For years, James has called out the billionaire-run algorithms that often radicalize young men in dark corners of the internet.”

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“As a young man himself, James feels a responsibility to speak out against this for-profit rage economy that’s destroying our youth — recently addressing this crisis in his widely circulated comments calling for a politics of love in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination,” he said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “That’s how we turn down the temperature.”

There are other instances in that same year when Talarico used fiery rhetoric against prominent Texas politicians, notably Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Gov. Greg Abbott, R-Texas.

On Jan. 6, 2021, Talarico posted, “You sacrificed your country for your ambition. You’re not a senator, you’re a traitor,” in response to Cruz’s calls for people “storming the Capitol” to stop.

And on Nov. 19, 2021, Talarico blasted Abbott for celebrating Kyle Rittenhouse’s not guilty verdict after being charged for fatally shooting two people during a night of civil unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, following the police shooting of Jacob Blake.

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“Are you our governor or a white supremacist troll?” he asked at the time.

Ennis also defended Talarico’s rhetoric in those moments.

“Texans need leaders who fight for their principles — like calling out those who promote insurrection and violence — while also working across the aisle to deliver bipartisan legislation that gets things done for working people,” he said. “James is that kind of leader.”

Republican lawmakers are accusing Democrats of playing politics over a resolution honoring the “life and legacy” of Charlie Kirk, which passed the House along bipartisan lines last week.

The Friday vote split Democrats – 95 voted to approve the measure, 58 voted in opposition, 38 voted “present” and 22 did not vote.

House Republicans have been hammering those 58, and several pointed out the fractured vote was much different from an earlier resolution condemning an attack on state lawmakers from Minnesota who were shot earlier this year.

That resolution passed the House in a unanimous 424-0 vote in late June. 

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“In June, House Republicans voted unanimously to condemn the attacks on Democratic Minnesota lawmakers,” Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., wrote on X late Sunday. “Last week, not even half of House Democrats voted to condemn the assassination of Charlie Kirk.”

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., recounted the tragedy in Minnesota with more detail, writing in a statement, “When Minnesota Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband were murdered, and State Senator John Hoffman and his wife were wounded, the U.S. House unanimously passed a resolution condemning the attack and political violence.”

“But after Charlie Kirk was assassinated, 58 Democrats voted against denouncing political violence,” Mace wrote.

Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., said he believed the decision by dozens of Democrats to oppose the measure would reflect negatively on the party as a whole in the coming midterm elections.

“58 House Democrats refused to condemn the assassination of Charlie Kirk. Every House Republican voted to condemn the attack against the Democrat lawmakers in Minnesota. This is why Democrats continue to lose,” Steube wrote on X. “Americans won’t forget in 2026.”

Rep. Randy Fine, R-Fla., also criticized those who voted “present.”

“Every single House Republican voted to condemn the murders in Minnesota. Meanwhile, 58 House Democrats refused to condemn the murder of Charlie Kirk. Another 38 put their hands in their pockets. Those 96 need to be held accountable,” Fine wrote.

The Minnesota resolution condemned “the June 14, 2025, attacks on Minnesota state legislators” and called “on all people in the United States to reaffirm our commitment to a safe, civil, and peaceful democracy.”

The resolution honored “the lives of Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark Hortman, who were killed, Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette Hoffman, who were critically injured, and the law enforcement officers who rapidly responded to the attacks and apprehended the suspected perpetrator.”

GOP GOVERNOR NOMINEE PUSHES REDISTRICTING TO OUST STATE’S LONE HOUSE DEM

Republicans’ measure memorializing Kirk went into comparatively more detail on the slain conservative activist as a person, lauding him as “one of the most prominent voices in America, engaging in respectful, civil discourse across college campuses, media platforms and national forums, always seeking to elevate truth, foster understanding and strengthen the Republic.”

It also said Kirk “personified the values of the First Amendment…and did so with honor, courage, and respect for his fellow Americans,” while calling on all Americans to condemn political violence.

Several Democrats who opposed the measure said they were uncomfortable with its praise of Kirk.

“Political violence should never be tolerated. However, empathy is not celebration, and I do not have to call Charlie Kirk a hero. He was no such thing. He repeatedly disparaged minorities, especially Black Americans,” Rep. Shri Thandear, D-Mich., wrote on X Friday.

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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., said in a written statement, “Condemning the depravity of Kirk’s brutal murder is a straightforward matter – one that is especially important to help stabilize an increasingly unsafe and volatile political environment where everyday people feel at risk.”

“It then only underscores the majority’s recklessness and intent to divide by choosing to introduce this resolution on a purely partisan basis, instead of uniting Congress in this tragedy with one of the many bipartisan options to condemn political violence and Kirk’s murder, as we did with the late Melissa Hortman,” she continued. “His rhetoric and beliefs were ignorant and sought to disenfranchise millions of Americans – far from ‘working tirelessly to promote unity’ as asserted by the majority in this resolution.”

The Dems’ disdain for Charlie Kirk showed, even on the day of his memorial. 

Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, slammed others in her party for not opposing the resolution honoring him, saying it “hurt [her] heart” that only two White Democrats voted no.

She claimed Kirk’s rhetoric targeted people of color. In total, 58 House Dems voted against it. President Trump fired back: “It tells you that they’re deranged.”

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Despite calls to deescalate, Dems still labeled Trump a fascist and skipped Kirk’s memorial in Arizona, and only six attended the earlier Capitol vigil.

Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., who are among Kirk’s harshest critics, also didn’t hold back. Omar claimed Kirk’s legacy belongs “in the dustbin of history.”

REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: CONGRESS FAILS TO LOWER POLITICAL TEMPERATURE AFTER CHARLIE KIRK ASSASSINATION

Ocasio-Cortez previously called Kirk’s views “ignorant [and] uneducated.” 

At the memorial, former Trump administration official Ben Carson appeared to fire back: “I’ve seen him run circles around people with college degrees.”

Charlie Kirk’s memorial service in Glendale, Arizona, drew thousands of attendees and dozens of speakers who shared their memories of the slain activist.

Many of the sentiments — such as those about Kirk’s influence in the conservative movement — were well-known, while others were more personal.

The newly shared stories shed light on Kirk’s short 31-year life and how his closest friends, employees and family members remember him.

Here are some highlights from the service: 

MEMORIAL SERVICE FOR ASSASSINATED TURNING POINT USA FOUNDER CHARLIE KIRK DRAWS TRUMP, MAJOR GOP FIGURES

Love notes 

Erika Kirk, Charlie Kirk’s widow, revealed numerous personal details about their marriage.

One of them was a ritual that kept their marriage strong, despite Kirk’s constant travel.

“Someone once asked me how Charlie and I thought we kept our marriage so strong when he was busy traveling,” she said. “Our little secret: It was love notes. Every Saturday, Charlie wrote one for me, and he never missed a Saturday.”

“And in every single one of them, he’d tell me what his highlight was for the week, how grateful he was for me and our babies,” she added. “And always at the end, he would always end it with asking the most beautiful question … ‘Please let me know how I can better serve you as a husband.’”

WHO IS ERIKA KIRK?: WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE LATE CHARLIE KIRK’S WIDOW FROM THEIR LOVE STORY TO HIS LEGACY

She also spoke about her husband’s love of journaling and his strong belief in mobilizing the conservative student movement.

“There was nothing that was too hard or too painful or nothing that he just felt like he didn’t want to do,” she said. 

“Charlie died with incomplete work, but not with unfinished business. And I will miss him. I will miss him so much. Because our marriage and our family were beautiful.”

Daily Bible quote texts and hunting trips

Sergio Gor, director of the White House Presidential Personnel Office, shared how Kirk impacted his life through his Christian faith.

“The world of politics can be full of transactional people. Charlie wasn’t one of them,” Gor said. “He was the polar opposite.”

“One of the things I will miss the most is receiving a text every morning from Charlie with a daily Bible verse. Charlie would help set the tone of the day for so many of us.”

LIVE UPDATES: MEMORIAL SERVICES FOR CHARLIE KIRK

Gor was friends with Kirk for more than a decade, and the two traveled the world from Louisiana to Greenland.

“Over a decade, we created countless memories, from hunting alligators in Louisiana to eating seal in Greenland to countless nights on the patio at Mar-a-Lago as President Trump played ‘Phantom of the Opera,’” he said. 

“When President Trump started talking about the importance of Greenland to our national security, Charlie was one of the first people who thought it would be a great idea to visit. He was also one of the first to fall in the snow upon arrival, but without a beat, Charlie got up and continued onward with a smile.”

Kirk’s quiet generosity extended beyond politics

Stacy Sheridan, Turning Point’s senior advancement director, shared how Kirk quietly helped her husband while he was dying of cancer.

“Charlie called me consistently to ask how he could help us,” Sheridan recalled. “At one point, he had critical medication and an oxygen machine sent to my doorstep without my knowledge. I still to this day, have no idea how he made that happen. But that was Charlie. He did the right thing.”

Sheridan also revealed how she struggled with work during that time, and that Kirk would console her.

ERIKA KIRK, AHEAD OF MEMORIAL SERVICE, INSPIRES CHRISTIAN STAFFER TO REMAIN ‘ROOTED IN FAITH’

“Sometimes I would express guilt to Charlie that I couldn’t do my job at 100%. Charlie’s response every single time was, ‘Family first.’ When Mike ultimately passed away, Charlie and the entire team were there for us yet again.”

Sheridan also spoke about how Kirk supported her after she lost her home in the Pacific Palisades fire earlier in 2025. 

“Charlie’s response was very clear and very direct, ‘This is a sign you and Grace belong in Arizona.’ Within a few months, we moved here in Charlie and Erica welcomed us into their family.”

Podcasting became Kirk’s daily ritual

Andrew Kolvet, a spokesman for Turning Point USA, shared how much Kirk loved podcasting, even with his busy schedule.

Kolvet, an executive producer on the show, noted that Kirk loved sharing his thoughts and hearing from the audience.

TURNING POINT USA ANNOUNCES MASSIVE PUBLIC MEMORIAL SERVICE FOR CHARLIE KIRK AT ARIZONA FOOTBALL STADIUM

“It was his one constant amid never-ending change, even when he was on the road, even when he was overseas, or even during AmFest or our conferences, we did the show,” Kolvet said.

“But mostly it worked because Charlie loved you, the audience,” he said. “He read every single email you all sent to him. That’s why he said every single day, ‘Send us an email at freedom@charliekirk.com. Send us your thoughts.’”

Kirk opened doors for future leaders

At the memorial, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., said that “there would be no Congresswoman Luna without Charlie Kirk.”

The Florida representative detailed her experience working with Kirk at Turning Point USA as an outreach director.

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“I still remember the phone call that changed my life,” Luna said. “‘Hey, Anna, it’s Charlie. I’d like to offer you a job as Texas National Hispanic Outreach director.’”

“Charlie believed with every fiber of his being, that the youth of this nation would save it,” she continued. “These were the sparks that lit the path for me on the eve of my departure to medical school, to decide to change course and join TPUSA, where I could help Charlie battle the socialist indoctrination on college campuses.”

Witness to Kirk’s final moments

Frank Turek, a Christian apologist and mentor to Kirk, was with him on the day of his assassination and helped rush him to the hospital.

Turek previously opened up about his experience witnessing Kirk die, and he shared additional details about how he helped carry Kirk to a car and transported him to the nearest hospital.

“I was doing a lot of yelling,” he said. “And I want you to know that we did everything we could to save Charlie. But Charlie was already gone.”

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“His face was looking at mine, but he wasn’t looking at me. He was looking past me right into eternity. And if it’s any comfort at all, I learned later that Charlie felt no pain. He died instantly.”