GOP chairwoman says the party needs 'more people like' Charlie Kirk and Candace Owens, another sign that Trumpism isn't going anywhere
- The chairwoman of the Republican National Committee on Thursday pointed to Turning Point USA's Charlie Kirk and Candace Owens as the future of the GOP.
- "People like Candace Owens, like Charlie Kirk, we need more leaders like that," Ronna McDaniel said at this year's CPAC, an annual conservative conference.
- Kirk and Owens are vehemently pro-Trump and unabashedly anti-leftist.
Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel on Thursday praised Turning Point USA's founder and president, Charlie Kirk, and communications director, Candace Owens, as the future of the Republican party.
Speaking at CPAC, a huge annual conference for conservatives, McDaniel said, "People like Candace Owens, like Charlie Kirk, we need more leaders like that."
Kirk, 25, has enjoyed a rapid ascent in the conservative movement in the Trump era.
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Kirk is close friends with Donald Trump Jr. and has a large presence on Twitter, typically tweeting anti-leftist messages and focusing on the alleged marginalization of conservatives in present-day America. President Donald Trump often retweets Kirk and has met with him in the past.
Kirk's conservative advocacy group, Turning Point USA, has also drawn consistent criticism for initatives like the "Professor Watchlist," which tracks "leftist propaganda" on college campuses.
Turning Point has also faced pressure over the fact its content was routinely shared by Russian agents as part of the Kremlin's efforts to interfere in the 2016 presidential election. Kirk in December told INSIDER he rejected the use of Turning Point's content by a "foreign adversary" but also said he couldn't control who shares it.
Owens has also garnered a platform via her work with Turning Point USA, frequently attacking leftism, feminism, and critics of the political right.
In addition to McDaniel's praise, Kirk also gave a speech to this year's conference. In the speech, Kirk claimed the left always "hated this country."
"One of the things Donald Trump has done is, he has not changed the left, he has revealed them. This is who they have always been," Kirk said. "They have always hated this country. They have always had contempt for our history."