Claim:
Erika Kirk, the widow of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, said she would get less hate if she had touched U.S. Vice President JD Vance’s backside, in response to a question about the outrage around their hug.
Rating:
Context
Interviewer Megyn Kelly shared criticism of Kirk’s hug with Vance, saying people “were acting like you touched the back of his a**!” In response, Kirk said, “I feel like I wouldn’t get as much hate if I did that.”
More than two months after the shooting death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, his widow and Turning Point USA CEO Erika Kirk faced criticism for a hug she shared with U.S. Vice President JD Vance at a Turning Point event. Posts online claimed said she would get “less hate” if she had touched Vance’s backside.
Numerous posts on Facebook and X shared clips of Kirk being interviewed by conservative commentator Megyn Kelly in which Kirk allegedly said: “I’d get less hate if I touched JD Vance’s a**.” One post stated:
ERIKA KIRK: “I’D GET LESS HATE IF I TOUCHED JD VANCE’S A**”
In her interview with Megyn Kelly, Erika Kirk finally addressed the viral “hug clip” and she didn’t hold back.
Megyn says critics went “to the weirdest places” over a hug:
“They were acting like you touched the back of his a**.”
Erika fires back:
“I feel like I wouldn’t get as much hate if I DID that.”
She says she’s an “intense hugger,” always touches the back of people’s heads when she says “God bless you,” and anyone who’s mad about it “needs a hug more than anyone else.”
So did she give JD an innocent hug or something that went way past normal?
Kirk did say she would get less hate if she had touched Vance’s backside, though not in those exact words. She was responding to Kelly’s comment, “They were acting like you touched the back of his a**.” As such, we rate this claim as true.
Kirk was speaking at an event hosted by Kelly on Nov. 24, 2025. The full event was available on Kelly’s YouTube channel. The transcript of their conversation is below (the exchange occurs at 1:19:28; emphasis ours):
KELLY: Forgive me. Did you see people didn’t understand the hug that you and JD had? They went to the weirdest places.
KIRK: Oh my gosh. You guys, please. So for those of you who know me, I never… I’m a very… I love… Hug is like…
KELLY: Yes, you’re an intense hugger, it’s awesome!
KIRK: Whoever is, like, hating on a hug needs a hug themselves. I will give you a free hug anytime you want a hug. My love language is touch, if you will. But seriously, that hug. So I will give you a play-by-play. I’m walking. They just played the emotional video. I’m walking over, he’s walking over, I’m starting to cry, he says, “He’s so proud of you,” and I say, “God bless you,” and I touch the back of his head. Anyone who I’ve hugged that I have touched the back of your head when I hug you, I always say “God bless you.” That’s just me. If you want to take that out of context, go right ahead. Again, that to me shows that you need a hug more than anyone else.
KELLY: They were acting like you touched the back of his a**!
KIRK: I feel like I wouldn’t get as much hate if I did that versus… But no seriously, so now when I go and hug people I’ll bring them back in and be like, I obviously didn’t give you the right hug. Like come, let me touch the back of your head. So I don’t know what to do with my hands!
While Kirk did not actually say the words, “I’d get less hate if I touched JD Vance’s a**” she responded affirmatively to Kelly’s statement to that effect saying people “were acting like you touched the back of his a**!”
We have covered a number of claims about Kirk after the death of her husband, including unverified affair rumors with Vance, and the fabricated claim she recruited victims for the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Sources
“Erika Kirk on Continuing Charlie’s Mission, Marriage, and Prayer, Plus Walter Kirn on UFOs and TDS .” YouTube, Megyn Kelly, 25 Nov. 2025, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wuChzINlHk4. Accessed 25 Nov. 2025.
Ibrahim, Nur. “Erika Kirk Isn’t in the Epstein Files as a ‘Recruiter.'” Snopes, 30 Sept. 2025, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/erika-kirk-recruit-victims-epstein/. Accessed 25 Nov. 2025.
Liles, Jordan. “Erika Kirk and JD Vance Spark Affair Rumors, but There’s No Evidence They’re True.” Snopes, 31 Oct. 2025, https://www.snopes.com//news/2025/10/31/erika-kirk-jd-vance-affair/. Accessed 25 Nov. 2025.
Wrona, Aleksandra. “13 Rumors about Erika Kirk That We’ve Investigated.” Snopes, 9 Nov. 2025, https://www.snopes.com//collections/erika-kirk-rumors/. Accessed 25 Nov. 2025.
