Charlie Kirk Memorial, Trump Pressures DOJ, Palestinian State Recognition

Thousands filled a stadium in Arizona for Charlie Kirk's memorial.

He did not hate his opponents.

He wanted

the best for them.

That's where I disagreed with Charlie.

I hate my opponent.

Was it a eulogy or a political rally?

I'm Layla Falden.

That's Michelle Martin.

And this is a first from NPR News.

President Trump posted a message online addressed to his Attorney General, investigate and prosecute his perceived political enemies.

It raises the question: is the Justice Department still independent?

And several Western allies of Israel recognize Palestine as a sovereign state.

But does it change anything for Palestinians still living under daily Israeli attacks in Gaza?

We want actions.

We want people to speak up, to change something, not to just say it and move on.

Stay with us.

We'll give you the news you need to start your day.

This message comes from NPR sponsor Pete and Jerry's, who invites you to breakfast on the farm.

At sunrise, enjoy your coffee and listen to the chatter of hens roaming their lush, sprawling pasture.

Heat up the skillet, then crack open an organic pasture-raised egg.

A vibrant golden yolk drops into the pan,

and your mouth waters as you anticipate a rich, delicious meal.

Learn more about Pete and Jerry's organic pasture-raised eggs at Pete and Jerry's.com.

This message comes from BetterHelp.

President Fernando Madera describes how BetterHelp Online Therapy has helped him.

For me, sometimes I just need to go and talk to somebody that is not going to judge me, right?

It's going to be there and going to listen to me.

And I can't start just saying, look, I'm not feeling right today.

And it feels natural.

I love it.

To get matched with a therapist, visit betterhelp.com slash npr for 10% off your first month.

This message comes from Warby Parker.

Prescription eyewear that's expertly crafted and unexpectedly affordable.

Glasses designed in-house from premium materials starting at just $95, including prescription lenses.

Stop by a Warby Parker store near you.

President Trump and other top administration officials eulogized right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, and they talked about what they described as the fight going forward.

Donald Trump Jr.

described Kirk as being like a little brother.

His loss cannot be the end of the story.

His legacy must be that when they took his life, a million more Charlies stepped up to fill the void.

Kirk was a divisive figure who worked to bring young people into the conservative fold.

He was assassinated nearly two weeks ago on a college campus in Utah.

He was 31 years old.

He was remembered yesterday as a political organizer, a Christian evangelist, a family man, and a martyr.

NPR senior White House correspondent Tam Rakith traveled with the president to Arizona for the memorial, and she is with us now after a very long day.

Good morning, Tam.

Good morning.

So tell us what it was like.

It was a massive event held in an NFL stadium that was packed to the rafters.

People were decked out in red, white, and blue.

Many were wearing white t-shirts with the word freedom across the front, which is what Kirk was wearing when he was shot.

It was part somber memorial, part political rally, part Christian revival.

There were even pyrotechnics.

So thanks for setting the scene for us.

So what stood out to you about the message?

Just about every speaker came back to a central idea that the assassin's bullet wouldn't silence Kirk, but make his message louder.

There was also a lot of stark language about the evils of the left.

President Trump spoke last.

Our greatest

evangelist for American liberty became immortal.

He's a martyr now for American freedom.

The president did veer off topic during his lengthy remarks, bringing up the 2020 election tariffs and his political rivals, noting that while Kirk wished his political opponents well,

I hate my opponent and don't want the best for them.

He said it with a smile.

The memorial was infused with Christianity, praise music, Bible verses, and that extended to government officials as well.

Vice President J.D.

Vance said he talked more about Jesus Christ in the last two weeks than in the rest of his public life, which he said was another legacy of Charlie Kirk.

Kirk was the founder and head of a group called Turning Point USA, which is aimed at advancing the conservative movement among younger people, especially college and probably even high school students.

So what happens now with this movement?

His widow, Erica Kirk, was selected by the group's board to be the new CEO of Turning Point USA.

But right now, she is also suddenly a young widow with two children.

She remembered her husband as someone who lived fully.

She said he died with incomplete work, but not with unfinished business.

And in a really emotional moment, she talked about her husband's efforts, as she put it, to save the lost boys of the West.

Young men, she said, like the one accused of killing her husband.

I forgive him.

Forgiveness, she said, because that's what Jesus did and it's what Charlie would do.

It's not clear what comes next for Kirk's movement or Trumpism for that matter, but there was this sense that in that very full stadium, this was a moment people will look back on, a turning point, if you will.

That is NFS Tam or Keith.

Tam, thank you.

You're welcome.

Over the weekend, President Trump had a message for Attorney General Pam Bondi.

In a post on social media, Trump pressured Bondi to investigate his perceived political rivals.

NPR justice correspondent Ryan Lucas is following this, and he's with us now from our studios.

Good morning, Ryan.

Good morning.

So before we get into what this means, could you just bring us up to speed on what actually happened?

So what did the president say?

Right.

Trump put out a post on social media on Saturday night addressed to Attorney General Pam Bondi by name.

And in the post, Trump mentions three people he views as his political enemies, former FBI director James Comey, California Democratic Senator Adam Schiff, and New York State Attorney General Letitia James.

And Trump said they are all guilty.

He doesn't say what of, only that they're guilty and that nothing is being done about it.

He said, quote, we can't delay any longer.

It's killing our reputation and credibility, end quote.

Trump added that he was impeached twice.

He was indicted multiple times, which is referring, of course, to the prosecutions that Trump faced after he left office the first time, including the two federal cases, one for allegedly mishandling classified documents, the other for trying to overturn the 2020 election.

Trump said in this post that all of that was baseless and that, quote, justice must be served now.

So this post came right after other consequential news out of the Justice Department.

The top federal prosecutor in Northern Virginia left his post under pressure from President Trump.

So what can you tell us about that?

That's right.

This is Eric Siebert.

He was a career federal prosecutor in the Eastern District of Virginia, right outside of D.C.

Trump had tapped him to lead the office.

And it's an important office.

They do a lot of big national security cases there, for example.

In that job, Siebert had been overseeing an investigation into New York State Attorney General Letitia James, one of the people Trump declared guilty in the post I was just talking about.

James won a civil fraud suit last year against Trump and his company with a massive financial penalty, although the penalty has since been voided.

Now, Siebert had expressed doubts about moving forward with charges in that case.

Trump was open about wanting Siebert gone.

And on social media, Trump said Siebert had said there was no case.

Trump said there's a great case, seeming to confirm that Siebert was forced out for not moving forward against James.

And is somebody replacing him in that office?

Do we know who that is?

Yes, Trump named Lindsay Halligan as the replacement.

She is someone with no prosecutorial experience, but Halligan has been working as an aide in the White House.

Before that, she served as a personal attorney for Trump.

Now, the president said on social media that Halligan will be fair, smart, and provide desperately needed justice for all.

And he also said that that office needs a tough prosecutor to, to, quote, get things moving.

So, what do these developments over the weekend say about the Justice Department in the second Trump administration?

Well, look, Trump talked openly during the 2024 campaign about going after his perceived political enemies if he returned to office.

He's never toned that down, but this is arguably the most direct since he's been back in the White House that he has urged the Justice Department to use the enormous powers that it has to go after specific people who he doesn't like.

You also have him forcing out a U.S.

attorney who wasn't doing that.

Now, for decades, there's been a norm against this very sort of thing.

Traditionally, the Justice Department is independent from the White House when it comes to investigations and prosecutions.

And the reason for that is so that decisions in such instances do not appear and are not driven by politics instead of the facts and the law.

So these developments over the weekend, yet again, are fueling already significant concerns about this administration and the weaponization of the Justice Department.

That is NPR Justice correspondent Ryan Lucas.

Ryan, thank you.

Thank you.

Today, France and other major Western countries will recognize a state of Palestine.

Yesterday, three key U.S.

allies on three different continents announced their recognition.

The move comes as the United Nations begins its week-long General Assembly gathering in New York and will put increasing pressure on the U.S.

and Israel as the war in Gaza moves into its third year.

With me now is NPR's Kerry Khan from Tel Aviv.

Kerry, thank you.

Hi.

So who is recognizing Palestine and why?

These are major U.S.

and Israeli allies, France, Canada, and the U.K.

also Portugal and Australia, and there will be others.

France is co-hosting a conference on recognition today with Saudi Arabia at the UN.

They want to draw attention to the ongoing war in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there.

These countries insist that the only route to peace is a two-state solution.

And a major step for that is recognition of Palestine as a full sovereign state.

The countries are putting pressure on Israel and the United States on the world stage, especially as Israel has started its deadly offensive into Gaza City and expelling that city's nearly 1 million residents.

How are Palestinians responding to these major countries finally recognizing a state?

Palestinian leaders quickly welcomed the move.

This past week, I was in the Israeli-occupied West Bank where many said they were honored by the recognition, but there are not going to be any public commemorations.

There's no mood for celebrations now.

The war is still raging in Gaza.

The death toll now is 65,000 Palestinians have been killed.

And many in the West Bank say this symbolic move doesn't really change their reality, which since the October 7th, 2023 attack by Hamas, Israel has cracked down hard in the West Bank and life is very difficult.

The number of arrests and those killed by Israeli forces has skyrocketed.

Israel says that's due to security risks and there have been several attacks in Israel.

Israel has also canceled work permits for 200,000 Palestinians.

Unemployment has soared.

So I went to this shiny new six-story mall in Ramallah, the commercial center of the West Bank.

It was pretty empty, but I did speak to two 20-year-old computer engineering university students.

I'll play you Biso Mohamed.

She says she's tired of hearing how important recognition is.

I'm so done of hearing people like talking about the thing without actions being done, actually.

Like, we're so tired.

I feel like we're no longer that much recognized as human beings, actually.

It's devastating.

She says it's nearly impossible to get home to see her parents.

There are now more than 1,200 checkpoints and barriers erected throughout the West Bank.

And there's also great fear that Israel will move to formally annex land there.

It occupies following this recognition.

So, what have Israeli leaders said?

How are they responding to this move?

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who spoke last night, says recognition just rewards Hamas for terrorism.

And he reiterated his stand that no Palestinian state will be established in the West Bank in Gaza.

And he's threatened retaliation, but he says it will wait until after he goes to address the UN and meets with President Trump.

A person briefed on the matter, not authorized to speak publicly, told NPR that Israel is considering various moves but would likely not formally annex West Bank land.

That person told us Saudi Arabia has sent Israel a message that annexation would thwart efforts to normalize relations between the two countries.

And the United Arab Emirates has also threatened to cut ties with Israel if it does move forward with annexation.

That is NPR's Kerry Khan from Tel Aviv.

Kerry, thank you.

You're welcome.

And that's up for Monday, September 22nd.

I'm Michelle Martin.

And I'm Layla Falden.

For your next listen, try consider Consider This from NPR.

We hear it up first, give you the three big stories of the day.

Our Consider This colleagues take a different approach.

They dive into a single news story and what it means to you.

Learn about a big story of the day in less than 15 minutes.

Listen now on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.

Today's episode of Up First was edited by Christian Dev Calamore, Kevin Drew, Mohamed El Vardisi, and Alice Wolfley.

It was produced by Ziad Buch, Ana Perez, and Christopher Thomas.

We get engineering support from Stacey Abbott and our technical director is Carly Strange.

We hope you'll join us again tomorrow.

This message comes from NetSuite.

What does the future hold for business?

Can someone invent a crystal ball?

Until then, over 42,000 businesses have future-proofed their business with NetSuite by Oracle, the number one AI cloud ERP, bringing accounting, financial management, inventory, and HR into one platform.

With real-time insights and forecasting, you're able to peer into the future and seize new opportunities.

Download the CFO's Guide to AI and Machine Learning for free at netsuite.com/slash story.

This message comes from Mint Mobile.

If you're tired of spending hundreds on big wireless bills, bogus fees, and free perks, Mint Mobile might be right for you with plans starting from $15 a month.

Shop plans today at mintmobile.com/slash switch.

Upfront payment of $45 for 3-month 5GB plan required.

New customer offer for first three months only.

Then full price plan options available.

Taxes and fees extra.

See Mint Mobile for details.

Support for this podcast and the following message come from ARM.

In the latest episode of their podcast, Tech Unheard, ARM CEO Renee Haas talks with Carnegie Mellon University President Farnum Jahanian about AI and the future of education and innovation.

Available on all podcast platforms.