Charlie Kirk is expected to posthumously receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom Tuesday on what would’ve been the right-wing activist’s 32nd birthday.
The Turning Point USA founder was fatally shot while speaking on a Utah college campus on Sept. 10. The President said a day later that he intended to honor the “giant of his generation” with the nation’s most revered civilian award.
Tuesday’s presentation is scheduled for 4 p.m. in the White House East Room. Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, will accept the honor on her late husband’s behalf. She also took over the conservative Turning Point USA movement he began in 2012 to organize young conservative voters.
Kirk was a loyal Trump supporter and worked tirelessly to put Trump back in office in the 2024 election.
“Donald Trump is on a rescue mission to revive your birthright, one your grandparents and those before them gave everything to hand down to you,” Kirk said during his speech at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
The President confirmed Kirk’s death on Truth Social the day the slain activist was murdered.
“He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us,” Trump said.
Trump also spoke at Kirk’s memorial, where he praised the Illinois native as a patriot whose legacy will endure.
“He’s a martyr now for American freedom,” Trump said.
The President awarded 24 people the Presidential Medal of Freedom during his first term in office including radio host Rush Limbaugh a day after the conservative pundit announced he was battling advance lung cancer. Limbaugh died less than two weeks after being presented with the medal during the President’s 2020 State of the Union address.
Trump said in September that he also plans to honor former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Tributes for Kirk were planned throughout the country Tuesday, including the unveiling of a monument bearing his likeness at Florida’s Treasure Coast Baptist Church, which includes a 31-foot flagpole.
