Vice President J.D. Vance delivered a fiery speech Sunday, closing out AmericaFest by commenting on the growing rift within the conservative movement.
Vance declared that “every American is invited” to join the America First movement, adding that “we have much more important work to do than cancel each other out.” While the vice president did not call out anyone by name, he did offer a direct repudiation of Ben Shapiro’s speech on Thursday in which he called Daily Caller co-founder Tucker Carlson, right-wing podcaster Candace Owens, Steve Bannon and others “fraudsters and con artists.”
“President Trump did not build the greatest coalition in politics by subjecting his supporters to endless, self-destructive purity tests,” Vance noted. He said: “I did not bring a list of conservative names to denounce or shoot down.” “Let me just say that the best way to honor Charlie is for none of us here to do anything after Charlie’s death that he himself refused to do in his life.” (RELATED: Megyn Kelly updates AmericaFest on whether she and Ben Shapiro are still friends)
Vance went on to say, “We build by adding and growing, not by tearing down.” Vance then added that Charlie Kirk “understands that any family can have its differences, its difficult conversations, and we can learn and get better and treat each other better, and we can love each other despite our differences. But winning takes teamwork.”
Tensions have been brewing for several months between Shapiro and other conservative figures including Carlson, Owens and Megyn Kelly. Shapiro called Carlson’s interview with white nationalist Nick Fuentes an “act of moral folly” during his speech Thursday. He also accused Kelly of “cowardice” for failing to condemn conspiracy theories put forth by Owens about the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.
Carlson dismissed Shapiro’s attacks as akin to “watching your dog pay taxes,” while Kelly responded on Friday, saying Shapiro “had the audacity to call me a friend before calling me a despicable coward.”
Erica Kirk endorsed Vance for president in 2028. The convention attracted more than 30,000 attendees.