This is worrisome. TPUSA was having an event in Athens, Georgia today featuring Vice President J.D. Vance. But they came close to canceling the even after serious threats were directed at Erika Kirk.
Turning Point USA spokesman Andrew Kolvet said Erika Kirk, wife of late conservative icon Charlie Kirk, received “some very serious threats in her direction,” prompting her absence from the event in Athens, Georgia.
Erika Kirk addressed her absence in a post on X, citing security concerns following threats she received ahead of the event.
Kirk posted a statement on X along with a video clip from the event where he absence was explained to the audience.
I was so looking forward to tonight’s event at the @universityofga with our Vice President @JDVance, but after all our family has been through, I take my security team’s recommendations extremely seriously. Thank you to our amazing Georgia chapter for your support. God bless you… https://t.co/f2rBre9ArJ
— Erika Kirk (@MrsErikaKirk) April 14, 2026
VP Vance said he decided to go forward with the event after speaking to the Secret Service. He also criticized the people who’ve made careers out of attacking Erika. This seems like a not-so-subtle reference to Candace Owens.
“Well, first of all, I love Erika. And I know that she did get some threats. And, you know, about two hours ago, Andrew, I was a little worried that we were going to have to cancel the event because Erika was not going to come, and she was very worried about it,” Vance told the crowd.
Vance said he consulted with the Secret Service before deciding to move forward. “I said, you know what? Let’s let Erika do what she needs to do for herself and her family,” he said.
The vice president also took aim at critics of the widow. “The people telling you that Erica wasn’t grieving her husband are full of s—, and we need to be honest,” Vance said. “But if your instinct is to go after a young mother because she’s grieving in a way that you find wrong, well, why don’t you stay in your lane and mind your own business?”
I’ve watched the into of the event and Vance spent a good five minutes talking about this. He was there with Erika after it happened so he has first hand experience of how she reacted.
Outside the event, which is being held at the University of Georgia, there were a bunch of protesters chanting slogans.
HAPPENING NOW: A group of protesters have gathered against @VP JD Vance, who is speaking at the “This Is The Turning Point” event at the University of Georgia.@TPUSA pic.twitter.com/R5VfZGwwvh
— FRONTLINES TPUSA (@FrontlinesTPUSA) April 14, 2026
Some of the critics made it inside and turned to heckling the VP. This happened as Vance was talking about the Pope’s recent comments.
JD Vance faces intense heckling at a TPUSA event in Georgia, sparking a heated exchange 🗣️
Will Vance recover? pic.twitter.com/tiLaeIxjmT
— BRICS Monitor (@BRICStracker) April 15, 2026
Anyway, the full event with Vance was about an hour and, apart from the heckling, seems to have gone over pretty well.
It’s too bad that there are people out there willing to use the threat of violence against a widow whose husband was murdered at an event like this just a few months ago. You really have to be one sick puppy to do something like that. But there are clearly a lot of sick puppies out there these days. Lots of people seem increasingly comfortable with violence for political ends. And when it works to silence someone, as it did here, those people are probably encouraged to try it again.
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