Trump was supposed to be giving a eulogy during the funeral of Charlie Kirk yet couldn't help making things about him.
Referring to Charlie Kirk Trump stated:
“He did not hate his opponents, he wanted the best for them,” Trump said, before breaking from his prepared remarks to add: “That’s where I disagreed with Charlie. I hate my opponents, and I don’t want the best for them, I’m sorry.”
Trump's word choice is very interesting--not "my enemies" but my "opponents". That could be half of the U.S. voting population.
Previously we could surmise that he was simply pursing the means to a particular end as he destroyed the infrastructure put in place via the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the Fair Housing Act of 1968, etc. Yet Trump’s explicit declaration that he ‘hates his opponents and does not want the best for them’ moves the conversation from one of political strategy to one of avowed animus. This rhetorical shift underscores that dismantling civil-rights protections is not merely incidental but mayH be motivated by hostility toward groups those laws were designed to protect.
Also of note is that it is not actually accurate to claim that Kirk didn't hate his opponents and wanted the best for them. While I would not presume to state that Charlie Kirk hates anyone, he did publicly argue that Black women were “taking slots” away from white people, therefore he wasn’t really wishing the
best for them at all. Even if he wrapped his rhetoric in language about merit or fairness, the underlying message is that opportunities for Black women are illegitimate or undeserved — which is a denial of what’s best for them.
Trump officials praise Charlie Kirk's faith and his mark on the conservative movement