Dem Rep Nadler Gets Charlie Kirk’s Name Wrong Repeatedly During House Hearing [WATCH]

Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), who announced earlier this year that he will not seek reelection, misstated the name of slain Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk twice during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday.

The 78-year-old lawmaker was questioning FBI Director Kash Patel when he referenced a New York Times article published Tuesday titled “Trump Invokes Kirk’s Killing and Justifying Measures to Silence Opponents.”

While reading from the article, Nadler twice referred to Kirk as “Charlie King.”

“‘In the wake of Charlie Kirk’s killing, President Trump and his allies have laid out a broad plan to target liberal groups, monitor speech, revoke visas and designate certain groups as domestic terrorists,’” Nadler read aloud from the report.

He then added, “Politicizing the murder of Charlie King to go after free speech is not a legacy I believe Charlie King would have wanted.”

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The misidentification occurred less than 10 seconds apart, drawing criticism online as Nadler attempted to argue that Kirk would not have supported the measures described in the New York Times piece.

The Times article cited remarks from Attorney General Pam Bondi, who on Monday appeared on The Katie Miller Podcast.

Bondi had stated that the Department of Justice would “target” Americans for “hate speech” in the aftermath of Kirk’s assassination.

Following questions from some commentators, Bondi issued a clarification on Tuesday.

“Hate speech that crosses the line into threats of violence is not protected by the First Amendment,” Bondi wrote on X.

“It’s a crime. For far too long, we’ve watched the radical left normalize threats, call for assassinations, and cheer on political violence. That era is over.”

The exchange between Nadler and Patel follows several high-profile misstatements by political figures in the past year.

Joe Biden, during his March 2025 State of the Union address, was pressed by lawmakers to say the name of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley, who had been murdered earlier that year. Biden instead referred to her as “Lincoln Riley.”

“Lincoln Riley, an innocent young woman who was killed by an illegal, that’s right. But how many of thousand of people [are] being killed by legals,” Biden said at the time.

“To her parents, I say my heart goes out to you, having lost children myself.”

Riley, 22, was found dead on the University of Georgia campus in February 2025 after going out for a run.

Venezuelan national Jose Ibarra, who entered the country illegally, was arrested and charged with her murder. He was convicted and sentenced to life in prison in November 2025.

Nadler has also previously addressed political violence in congressional hearings.

At a July 2024 Judiciary Committee session, he listed several examples of violent incidents but omitted high-profile attacks against conservatives.

Wednesday’s hearing was intended to examine the FBI’s handling of politically sensitive investigations, including the agency’s response to the assassination of Charlie Kirk.

Nadler’s repeated misidentification of Kirk drew renewed attention to how political leaders discuss acts of violence and the victims of those attacks.