Comedian Rob Schneider warned that if conservatives let the “extremists” fill the void Charlie Kirk left behind, then Republicans will lose and become “unelectable.”
Schneider spoke on the second day of Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest in Arizona, the organization’s first one since Kirk, its founder and a leading conservative voice, was assassinated in September at a TPUSA event at Utah Valley University.
“The void Charlie left behind is real and if we’re not careful about who fills it, if we let the Candace Owenses and Nick Fuenteses become our dominant voices, we’re going to make the exact mistake the Left made,” Schneider said.
“We’re going to risk once again giving the reins of power back to the crazy, radical Left,” he added.
Since Kirk’s death, questions have arisen about who will lead the young conservative movement. Various right-wing influencers that Kirk mentored are seen as possible candidates to fill this void and become leading voices.
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Schneider argued that embracing figures like Owens and Fuentes validates the Left’s claims about conservatives being extremist and that it would go against Kirk’s legacy.
“The left is trying to reframe Charlie into something he wasn’t and by extension all of us: extremist, Nazis, fascist, white supremacist,” he said. “By taking moderate people with views that are held by the majority and turning them into monsters, it hides the real monsters among us.”
Owens has gone viral on social media for spreading conspiracy theories about Kirk’s assassination, and launched her own investigation into his death.
Erika Kirk, Charlie’s widow, had a four-hour conversation with Owens this week after publicly asking Owens to stop spreading conspiracies about her husband’s death. Owens revealed Kirk did not ask her to stop her investigation during the meeting.
Schneider praised Kirk and said Fuentes represents the opposite of everything Kirk stood for.
“Charlie Kirk wasn’t Nick Fuentes, not even close,” Schneider said. “Charlie was about having conversations, addressing reality, opening up dialogue on college campuses. He made a point of resisting the more extreme elements on the Right.”
“He called people out when they got out of line. The Groypers. The people who actually crossed into antisemitism,” Schneider added.
The Groypers are a group of far-right activists and supporters of Fuentes, a self-avowed white nationalist.
Schneider’s remarks echoed Ben Shapiro’s speech on the first day of the conference, where Shapiro criticized Tucker Carlson for hosting Fuentes and Owens on his podcast.
In recent weeks, multiple Republicans have condemned Fuentes and those who give him a platform.
Vivek Ramaswamy, who is running for Ohio governor, wrote a New York Times op-ed warning about the growing influence of Groypers’ and urging a united front to combat them.
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Schneider said that when the Left embraced its “extremists,” it cost them the 2024 election. He warned that conservatives need to learn from Democrats’ mistakes.
“Here’s the warning,” Schneider said. “If the Right doesn’t learn from the Left’s mistake, if we embrace our extremists, the way the Left embraced theirs, we’ll go down the same path they did.”
The comedian said the “reasonable rational voices” Kirk represented need to fill Kirk’s void.
“Just like the Left, we will become unelectable, and everything Charlie built will be for not,” he said.
