Daniel Miller, President of the Texas Nationalist Movement, has released the following statement on the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
Today, we mourn the loss of Charlie Kirk, a young father, devoted husband, and passionate advocate who was gunned down at Utah Valley University. At just 31 years old, Charlie had his life cut short by an act of cowardice that strikes at the very heart of what we hold dear as Americans and as Texans.
Charlie Kirk understood something that many in Washington have forgotten – that real power belongs in the hands of the people, not in the halls of some distant bureaucracy. Through Turning Point USA, he spent over a decade empowering young people to think critically, question authority, and stand up for the principles that have shaped both the United States and Texas. His work on Texas campuses, from the University of Texas to Texas A&M, inspired countless young Texans to take an active role in shaping their own futures.
The assassination of Charlie Kirk is not just an attack on one man or one organization. It is an assault on free speech, on peaceful political discourse, and on the fundamental right of those under the federal umbrella to gather and express their beliefs without fear. This tragedy was not born in a vacuum. It was cultivated by the same hostile and inflammatory rhetoric that has been directed at Charlie Kirk, at President Trump, at our movement, and at anyone who dares to challenge the established order.
We have warned repeatedly that this escalation in rhetoric would lead to precisely this kind of violence. The dangerous rhetoric that floods our airwaves and social media is deepening divisions and creating a volatile environment ripe for violence and chaos. The same voices that demonized Charlie Kirk as a threat to democracy are the same voices that brand Texas Nationalists as traitors and insurrectionists. The same media apparatus that amplified hatred toward Charlie Kirk is the same one that distorts our peaceful movement for self-determination into something sinister and dangerous.
As we stated following the assassination attempt on President Trump, we condemn all forms of politically-motivated violence, regardless of the perpetrator or the victim. The Texas Nationalist Movement has always explicitly rejected violence as a tool for political change. Our Code of Conduct prohibits any member from advocating for or engaging in the initiation of force or violence as an instrument of political change. We believe in the power of peaceful self-determination, in the ballot box, and in the democratic process.
But we also recognize the pattern we are witnessing. When political opponents are consistently portrayed as existential threats, when their very existence is painted as dangerous to our republic, when their ideas are not debated but demonized, violence becomes the inevitable result. This is precisely what we have been warning against, and this is precisely why we have condemned the inflammatory rhetoric that creates such a toxic environment.
We have seen this disturbing pattern escalate. Attempts on President Trump’s life. The killing of a Minnesota state lawmaker. Now this. Each act of violence chips away at the foundation of civil society and threatens the principles of self-determination that Texans have always cherished. This is why we have long argued that peaceful independence through TEXIT could serve as a pressure release valve, preventing the broader civil conflict that seems to be building across the United States.
Charlie Kirk believed, as we do, that government closest to the people governs best. He understood that when Washington fails to secure our borders, protect our communities, or respect our constitutional rights, it falls to the states, and to the people, to take action. His advocacy for limited Federal Government and local control echoed the same principles that drive our movement for Texas independence. Rather than resort to violence or inflammatory rhetoric, Charlie chose to engage young minds and build grassroots support for these principles.
We call on law enforcement to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation into this assassination. The perpetrators must be brought to justice, and we must understand how this happened and why. But we also call on the media and political leaders to examine their own role in creating the climate that made this tragedy possible.
To Charlie’s wife, his young child, and his colleagues at Turning Point USA, we extend our deepest condolences. Your loss is felt not just by those who knew Charlie personally, but by everyone who believes in the power of grassroots activism and peaceful political engagement.
This tragedy reminds us that the work we do – whether it’s fighting for Texas independence, limited government, or the constitutional rights of those in the United States – comes with real risks. The same forces that painted Charlie Kirk as a “danger to democracy” paint us the same way. But we cannot and will not be intimidated into silence. The best way to honor Charlie Kirk’s memory is to continue the work he started, to keep empowering young people to think critically and act boldly, and to never stop fighting for the principles that we hold dear.
The Union is fracturing before our eyes, but violence is not the answer. Peaceful self-determination is. Charlie Kirk drew his line in the sand for constitutional principles and limited government. Now we must draw ours, not with violence, but with the unwavering commitment to peaceful independence and the God-given right of Texans to determine their own destiny.
