Former Turning Point USA staffer Caroline Stout remembers Charlie Kirk as “genuine” and apolitical before his Trump-era shift, reflecting on their time together after his assassination.
A former Turning Point USA employee has shared vivid memories of working with conservative activist Charlie Kirk following his high-profile death in Utah. Caroline Stout, 28, told The Mirror U.S. she first joined Kirk’s nonprofit in 2014 as a Texas high school student. “I got connected with them when I was 16 or 17 years old,” she said, calling herself a “recovering conservative.”
Stout recalled meeting Kirk during his early fundraising tours. “He was so genuine. He was very, very genuine,” she said. “I can only speak as to who he was and how he was back between 2014 and 2017, because after that, I hadn’t spoken to him since 2017.” She described him then as “really cool” and “very principled,” focused on fiscal issues and limited government.
But Stout said she left after noticing a strategic shift when Donald Trump became the Republican nominee. “Charlie said he could never vote for Trump,” she explained, adding the founder later “flipped” to support Trump to grow his influence.
Since leaving, Stout has embraced progressive politics despite tension with her conservative family. “It’s incredibly challenging because the general culture, especially being a white Christian in Texas, by default is expected that you are a Republican,” she said.
Kirk, 31, was fatally shot last week. Tyler Robinson, 22, has been charged with his murder.