People think Trump is ‘worse than Jimmy Kimmel’ with comment he made about Charlie Kirk

Donald Trump has set tongues wagging once again, this time after making a 'savage' comment about Charlie Kirk.

Social media users have accused the US President of being 'insensitive' while sharing his thoughts on the late political activist's opinions on free speech in a new interview.

They reckon that his words were far more below the belt than the remarks made by Jimmy Kimmel, which led to his late-night talk show being cancelled.

Kirk, 31, was famously outspoken and was known around the world for his 'Prove Me Wrong' debates.

He was also fiercely protective over free speech, and believed that Americans should be able to express their beliefs however they see fit.

In a post on X shared in May 2024, Kirk wrote: "Hate speech does not exist legally in America. There's ugly speech. There's gross speech. There's evil speech.

"And ALL of it is protected by the First Amendment. Keep America free."

Now, these words have somewhat come back to haunt him.

Since Kirk's passing on 10 September, prominent figures in the Trump administration warned they would crackdown on people 'celebrating' the dad-of-two's death.

Secretary of defence Pete Hegseth said the Department of War would 'address' federal employees who mock Kirk's death, while vice-president JD Vance told people to call the employers of anyone 'celebrating Charlie's murder'.

Attorney General Pam Bondi then told The Katie Miller Podcast: "There's free speech, and then there's hate speech.

"We will absolutely target you, go after you, if you are targeting anyone with hate speech."

In a post on X, she later clarified what she meant and wrote that 'hate speech that crosses the line into threats of violence is NOT protected' by the First Amendment.

Given that Jimmy Kimmel Live! was taken off air after 23 years earlier this week in wake of the star's comments about Kirk, it sparked fears that the government may be policing opinions in the States.

Kimmel directed his jokes at Trump rather than the deceased Turning Point USA founder - so people have been left pretty confused about what they can and can't say.

Fox News reporter Martha MacCallum tried to get some clarity on this while sitting down with the President on Thursday (18 September) during his two-day visit to the UK.

They spoke about Kirk at length as well as concerns raised about censorship in the US, with MacCallum asking Trump what he thinks of people who believe 'this crackdown is a crackdown on free speech'.

He responded: "I watch your show, and I watch others, and I see people saying things, they're crazy. These people are crazed lunatics, even the way they'll answer, you know, it's like, you'll see them, and the things they say are really bad, but they look crazy. They're almost crazed. Maybe they're drugged out. Maybe there's some other problem.

"But the kind of things you hear are so unbelievable, you wouldn't think - you're a very regular person, I am too, I'm a regular person - who would make the statements that they make?"

MacCallum also made reference to Kirk's stance on free speech, saying: "Charlie said, 'There is no such thing as hate speech'."

Trump then matter of factly responded: "He might not be saying that now."

According to social media users, the President's remark was 'way worse' than what Kimmel said.

One person said: "That was a subtle savage tho."

A second added: "This is way worse than what Jimmy Kimmel said. Trump don’t GAF about nothing."

A third wrote: "That was so insensitive," while another asked: "So y'all going to call and get him removed from his job?"

"Literally people getting fired all over the country for saying less than this," a fifth chimed in, while a sixth sighed: "Wtf we are really living in an idiocracy."

Tyler Robinson, 22, was taken into custody on 11 September after an extensive manhunt came to an end when one of his relatives tipped-off police.

He has been charged with aggravated murder, commission of a violent offence in the presence of a child, two counts of witness tampering, two counts of obstruction of justice and felony discharge of a firearm.

The charge of aggravated murder carries the potential for the death penalty, and officials said they would be seeking that.