Megyn Kelly confronts student at Virginia Tech TPUSA event over Charlie Kirk remarks

Megyn Kelly confronted a liberal student at a Turning Point USA campus event on the campus of Virginia Tech on Wednesday, as part of the group’s American Comeback Tour honoring Charlie Kirk. The remark that drew the confrontation claimed President Trump’s rhetoric contributed to the assassination of Kirk, TPUSA’s founder, and Kelly swiftly pushed back against the charge.

The event, staged as the second of eleven campus appearances for the tour, drew a packed auditorium and featured Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin along with other speakers. As the student in the audience asked, “Why do you support a president who contributes to the rhetoric that got your friend Charlie Kirk killed?” Kelly responded with a rapid, forceful refutation. She described the question as a “blatant lie” and a “defamatory blaspheme,” urging the student to reconsider the premise of his inquiry in that setting. The back-and-forth occurred as the crowd grew louder, with cheers rising after each decisive remark from Kelly.

When the student attempted to qualify his stance by saying Trump “contributed to the atmosphere” that led to Kirk’s killing, Kelly told him, “Well then you have no point. Then your point is utterly empty. ‘Contributing to the atmosphere?’ Let’s just be clear, [Tyler Robinson] was motivated by leftists ideology.” She added that the evidence was reflected in what she described as the shooter’s circumstances and reaction from public figures. “We know it from the bullet casings, we know it from the Utah governor, we know it from his own mother,” Kelly continued, drawing applause from the audience.

The liberal student then pivoted to discuss former special counsel Jack Smith, before abandoning the microphone amid boos from some audience members. Kelly maintained a calm tone, telling the crowd, “It’s good to have some folks come up and disagree.” The moment underscored the event’s format, which combines conservative commentary with open dialogue, as TPUSA pursues its nationwide campus outreach.

The American Comeback Tour at Virginia Tech is the second stop on a planned eleven-campus circuit, designed to amplify Charlie Kirk’s messaging and celebrate conservative voices on college campuses. The tour’s lineup for this stop included Governor Youngkin, underscoring TPUSA’s aim to blend political commentary with appearances by prominent Republicans. The administration at Virginia Tech did not publicly comment on the event beyond gate receipts and attendance figures, according to campus observers.

The exchange also reflected a broader debate on campus stages about the limits of rhetoric and the line between political argument and violence, a topic that has dominated national discourse in recent years. Kelly’s handling of the moment was widely captured by attendees and disseminated by social media and news outlets, contributing to the ongoing conversation about how public figures respond to provocative questions in a charged environment on college campuses.

As the tour continues to campuses around the country, organizers say the goal is to spotlight conservative debate, while opponents argue that such events can intensify divisions on campuses. The Virginia Tech stop marked a high-profile moment in this year’s iteration of the American Comeback Tour, highlighting the ongoing tension between free expression and partisan advocacy on college grounds.