As Erika Kirk Forgives Assassin, Trump Voices 'Hate' for Foes

President Trump praised political activist Charlie Kirk as a martyr while expressing hate for his opponents during an hourslong memorial event in an Arizona stadium on Sunday, just after Erika Kirk told thousands of mourners that she forgives her husband's assassin. "I forgive him because it was what Christ did and what Charlie would do," she said, NBC News reports. "The answer to hate is not hate. The answer we know from the gospel is love, and always love—love for our enemies and love for those who persecute us." The messages included:

• Erika Kirk: Before stepping to the microphone at State Farm Stadium west of Phoenix, where the Turning Point organization she now runs is based, Kirk wiped tears from her eyes and mouthed words as she looked up. "My husband, Charlie. He wanted to save young men" like the one accused of fatally shooting her husband, she said, per the Washington Post. Kirk urged young men to follow her husband's example in fatherhood and marriage, per the New York Times. She described the type of Christian marriage they supported in which men are the spiritual head of the home, while adding an admonition. "Please be a leader worth following," Kirk said. "Your wife is not your servant. Your wife is not your employee. Your wife is not your slave. She is your helper. You are not rivals. You are one flesh, working together for the glory of God."

• Trump: Kirk "did not hate his opponents," the president told the crowd. "That's where I disagree with Charlie," Trump added. "I hate my opponents, and I don't want the best for them. I am sorry, Erika." Mourners, who had been standing in line or sitting in the stadium for hours, began leaving as Trump discussed tariffs, crime in the nation's capital, and other issues. "Charles James Kirk was heinously murdered by a radicalized, cold-blooded monster for speaking the truth that was at his heart," Trump said. "He was violently killed because he spoke for freedom and justice, for God and country, for reason and for common sense." He called Kirk the "greatest evangelist for American liberty." After his speech, the last of the day, the president called Erika Kirk back to the stage as "America the Beautiful" was played.

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• JD Vance: The vice president assured the crowd that he and others will pursue their political goals in a way inspired by the political commentator. "For Charlie, we will never shrink. We will never cower," Vance said. "And we will never falter. Even when staring down the barrel of a gun."
• Stephen Miller: The Trump aide gave a darker speech, telling political opponents: "You are wickedness. You are jealousy, you are envy, you are hatred. You are nothing." Miller said they have made Kirk immortal, per the AP. "You have no idea the dragon you have awakened," he said. "You have no idea how determined we will be to save this civilization, to save the West, to save this republic."
• Faith and politics: The event mixed Christianity and Republican goals, with faith-based and political messages. Trump referred to Kirk as a martyr for America, while Vance called him a national hero and a "martyr for the Christian faith."