'Big fight' at Turning Point USA as 'real divide in ranks' forms over leaked Charlie Kirk texts

Cracks are appearing in the right-wing student organization Turning Point USA following the leak of texts from its founder, the late MAGA influencer Charlie Kirk, in which he discussed Jewish donors pulling funding over his links to former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, according to The Bulwark.

Screenshots of the texts were shared by far-right pundit Candace Owens, who, according to Newsweek, "has been criticized by some over what she has posted, which has been described as rumors and conspiracy theories.

In the texts, Kirk, who was a strong supporter of Israel, said that he had lost a $2 million donation from a Jewish donor over his refusal to disinvite Carlson from an upcoming event.

The authenticity of the texts, described as "unsavory" by The Bulwark's Sam Stein, was confirmed Tuesday by Turning Point USA spokesman Andrew Kolvet, who shared the texts to government officials immediately following Kirk's assassination, Newsweek reports.

"I did share it with some people in government because it happened really quick," Kolvet said. "It was, you know, it took 33 hours for authorities to get their suspect. And in those first moments, we wanted no stone unturned."

These texts, Stein says, show "some broader significance," saying that since Kirk's death, "there has been a big fight over his legacy."

Journalist Will Sommer explains that Kirk's friend and former Turning Point employee Owens was floating conspiracies including one in which she said "Kirk was about to turn on Israel and there's kind of this implication that Israel committed the assassination."

"People were telling her, 'Candace, you don't have the goods, it's over for you,' and then she came out with this text message on Monday," Sommer says.

In the text message, Kirk said donors were getting mad at him for hanging out with Carlson, an outspoken critic on Israel.

"Jewish donors play into all the stereotypes," Kirk wrote. "I can not and will not be bullied like this."

In a following text, Kirk said recent events were "leaving me no choice but to leave the pro-Israel cause."

Stein says this text leak feeds into Owens' conspiracy theory that Israel killed Kirk, one that has been debunked by those close to him.

Sommer agrees, saying, "This gets to the larger issue. The right has realized they have a lot of political capital from this assassination. People like [President Donald Trump's deputy chief of staff] Stephen Miller said they were going to use this to crush the left."

Carlson and Owens, Sommer says, "are throwing up to more rational people on the right that it's kind of a smokescreen and they're distracting from what should be the big 'crush the left moment'. I think this is becoming a real issue for Turning Point USA. They're kind of being led around by Candace Owens here."

Stein agrees and says now people will be looking at Turning Point USA to see "what do they say about Israel?"

"There's a real divide in the ranks over the U.S. Israeli alliance here," Stein said.