The Charlie Kirk revenge plot

Today, Explained

Vox

Daily News, Politics, News

4.4 • 9.5K Ratings

🗓️ 17 September 2025

⏱️ 28 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

The motives behind Charlie Kirk’s killing are still unclear, but the Trump administration is mounting a crackdown on people and groups he says are part of the problem. This episode was produced by Denise Guerra with help from Devan Schwartz, edited by Jolie Myers, fact-checked by Laura Bullard and Danielle Hewitt, engineered by Patrick Boyd and Adriene Lilly, and hosted by Sean Rameswaram. Tyler James Robinson attending a virtual court hearing from Utah County Jail. Photo by Utah State Courts via Getty Images. Listen to Today, Explained ad-free by becoming a Vox Member: vox.com/members. Transcript at vox.com/today-explained-podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Over the weekend, flags from the McDonald's at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to a transgender pride flag in West Hollywood, California, to flags all over our nation's capital flew half staff for Charlie Kirk.
0:13.7	Cole plays Chris Martin sent love from a concert in London.
0:19.3	South Koreans were out in the street chanting...
0:21.6	The world was mourning a pretty divisive guy, but the Trump administration wasn't
0:28.3	satisfied.
0:29.6	They're doubling down on retribution.
0:31.6	So when you see someone celebrating Charlie's murder, call them out in hell, call their employer.
0:36.6	We will absolutely target you, go after you.
0:40.3	We are going to channel all of the anger that we have
0:43.3	over the organized campaign that led to this assassination
0:48.3	to uproot and dismantle these terrorist networks.
0:50.3	They're doubling down even though we still don't fully know
0:52.3	why Charlie Kirk was
0:54.2	murdered. What we do know on Today Explained from Vox.
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1:47.2	So far, most of them are taking the money, but a few are fighting.
	...

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