‘Mr President, I’m sorry’: JD Vance recounts moment he informed Trump of Charlie Kirk’s death

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Vice President JD Vance has described the painful moment when he broke the news of Charlie Kirk’s death to President Donald Trump and the Oval Office.

While speaking on Jesse Watters’ 'Prime Time' on Fox News on September 17, Vance described that he first comforted the White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, who broke down in tears, as he broke the tragic news about Kirk.

JD Vance recalls White House chaos after Charlie Kirk's death

“I was the person who walked into the Oval Office and said, ‘Mr President, I’m sorry, but Charlie’s passed,'” Vance recalled. “That was a very tough moment,” he added. 

“We supported each other in that moment as you do with your friends, but man, that was a bad, bad day,” he said.

Vance recalled the time his phone began to explode with messages around 2:30 pm on September 10, as he was finishing a meeting in his West Wing Office.  

“I looked at my phone, and there were a bunch of group chats — frankly, a lot of them that Charlie was in — where they said, ‘Charlie, I am praying for you, brother. Hope you’re doing OK,'” Vance said.

Then someone broke the news to him, saying, “Charlie’s been shot”, as he opened the door, and at this point, the shock turned into reality for him. "This is very real, this is very serious," he said. 

The vice president and his team spent the next hour trying to confirm Kirk’s condition while being in contact with Micky McCoy, Kirk’s chief of staff.

Although there was a brief period of hopeful reports from the hospital, soon they all learned about Kirk’s death, approximately an hour before the news was made public. 

Wiles then rushed to the Oval Office to update the president, where he embraced her as she broke down into tears. 

“She doesn’t show emotion. She’s even keeled the whole way. I just hugged Susie, and I guess all of us kind of lost it,” Vance said.

JD Vance describes Trump's reaction about Charlie Kirk's death

When asked about Trump's reaction, Vance said, “The president is very stoic. He was clearly upset. He just went quiet and let it absorb a little bit. And then just shook his head and said, ‘Man, he was a good guy and we really loved him.’"

Vance has refused to watch the video of Charlie Kirk's death again. “I don’t want to see that happen to my friend ever again,” he said. 

JD Vance recalls his friendship with Charlie Kirk

Hours after the tragic event, Vance shared a tribute describing Kirk as his “dear friend” and revealed that the conservative activist was one of the reasons he decided to run for the office.

Vance recalled the time when they first met before 2018, and they stayed close all the way until he was chosen as VP. Vance even carried Kirk's casket abroad Air Force Two to Arizona.