JD Vance and Erika Kirk embrace during the Turning Point USA tour stop at Ole Miss on Oct. 29. Credit :
JONATHAN ERNST/POOL/AFP via Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- JD Vance spoke at a Turning Point USA event on Wednesday, Oct. 29
- The vice president was introduced to the stage by Charlie Kirk’s widow, Erika, who has taken over as CEO of TPUSA since her husband’s assassination on Sept. 10
- Vance and Erika’s emotional embrace when he took the stage quickly went viral on social media
Vice President JD Vance was the guest of honor at a Turning Point USA event at the University of Mississippi on Wednesday, Oct. 29. But it was a moment during his introduction that has since gone viral.
Erika Kirk, the widow of right-wing political organizer Charlie Kirk, has taken her husband’s place as Turning Point CEO following his assassination during a TPUSA event on Sept. 10. She opened Wednesday’s event with an emotional speech, noting that the day marked seven weeks since her husband was killed.
“When our team asked my dear friend, Vice President JD Vance, to speak today, I really prayed on it, because obviously it’s a very emotional, emotional day,” Erika, 36, shared. “But I could just hear Charlie in my heart. I could just hear him say, ‘Go reclaim that territory, babe. Go. The battle’s already won. God’s love conquers.’ “Erika Kirk and JD Vance embrace at the Turning Point USA event in Oxford, Miss., on Oct. 29.
JONATHAN ERNST/POOL/AFP via Getty
Despite her tearful words, the budding social media conversation after the event stemmed from her dynamic with Vance, 41.
“No one will ever replace my husband,” she told the crowd. “But I do see some similarities of my husband in JD— in Vice President JD Vance. I do. And that’s why I am so blessed to be able to introduce him tonight.”
As Vance took the stage, he and Erika embraced in an intimate manner. The vice president rested his hands on Erika’s hips, and she seemed to thread her fingers through his hair, leaving it slightly mussed.
The greeting surprised many internet users, according to a flurry of widely circulated social media posts that analyzed their hand placements and debated whether the hug was appropriate for the situation.
Also present at Wednesday’s event was Vance’s wife, Usha Chilukuri Vance. In addition to his hug with Erika, the VP made a buzzy comment while addressing how his religious beliefs differ from the second lady’s.
When asked how he and his wife of more than a decade manage raising their three children in an inter-faith household — she was raised Hindu, while he converted to Catholicism in adulthood — the vice president shared that they are raising their children Christian. He added that he hopes his wife will one day be swayed by his faith as well.
“Most Sundays, Usha will come with me to church,” JD continued. “Do I hope, eventually, that she is somehow moved by the same thing that I was moved in by church? Yeah, honestly, I do wish that, because I believe in the Christian gospel and I hope eventually my wife comes to see it the same way.”
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