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As we previously reported, Donald Trump awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to the late Charlie Kirk on Tuesday.
The ceremony took place on what would have been Kirk’s 32nd birthday.
The event mostly went off without a hitch, but there were some unusual moments, including one in which Charlie’s widow, Erika Kirk, felt the need to correct Trump on the nature of her husband’s character.
The unexpected moment of tension quickly went viral with many social media users expressing confusion over the odd scene.
When addressing the crowd at last month’s Charlie Kirk memorial in Arizona, Erika described her late husband as a man who encouraged “love for our enemies and love for those who persecute us.”
Perhaps jokingly, Trump pushed back at the characterization during his address on Tuesday.
“He was able to fight people that were enemies, and he didn’t necessarily love those enemies so much,” the president said, adding:
“You know, I heard he loved his enemies, and I said, ‘Wait a minute, is that the same Charlie that I knew?’ I’m not sure. But I didn’t want to get into it.”
The comment prompted Erika to reply, “He did pray for his enemies. I saw him do it.”
The moment of tension passed quickly, but things took another strange turn shortly thereafter, when Trump revealed that he had initially wanted to postpone the ceremony but had a last-minute change of heart.
“I was going to call Erika and say, ‘Erika, could you maybe move it to Friday?’” he told the crowd.
Some observers were also taken aback by Trump’s decision to discuss his political agenda and the assassination attempt he survived last year.
“I made a turn at a good time. I made a turn at a good time, I turned to the right,” Trump said.
“Charlie couldn’t believe it, actually. He said, ‘How the hell did you make that turn?’ I said, ‘I don’t know.’”
All in all, it was an unusual event that prompted questions about Trump’s relationship with both Erika Kirk and with the evangelical component of his base.
It won’t be the last time that Trump talks about Charlie Kirk — but he’ll likely try to avoid such awkwardness in future discussions.
Did Donald Trump Clash With Erika Kirk During Medal of Freedom Ceremony? was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.