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Trump Gaggles with the Press on Air Force One, Sep. 21, 2025

September 21, 2025 · The White House · 0:13:18

Embedded from the source channel — never re-uploaded. Watch on YouTube

What happened

President Donald Trump took questions from the press pool aboard Air Force One on September 21, 2025, flying back from the Charlie Kirk memorial in Arizona, in a gaggle carried on the White House channel. “I think we had a great tribute to a great man, a great, wonderful guy,” he opened.

Asked what he had said to Erika Kirk, the President said: “I’ve gotten to know her over the years. She’s great. Charlie always used to say she’s very smart… She’s got a good heart, and she’s got a shot at making it even more special.” Asked about honoring Kirk at the White House, he pointed to the Presidential Medal of Freedom: “We’re giving them, I think even more importantly, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which is the highest civilian — Congressional Medal of Honor is for military, and this is for the civilian. So that’s a great tribute to him.”

Asked how his administration would carry Kirk’s vision forward, he said: “I think it’s going to be automatic, actually, and I think Turning Point is going to be a very big factor.” He also addressed the Elon Musk appearance at the memorial: “Elon came over and said hello… I thought it was nice that he came over.”

Why it matters

This gaggle is the first on-record confirmation of the Medal of Freedom plan in the President’s own words, given hours after the memorial — the award whose ceremony this site’s chronicle tracks — and his “automatic” answer sets the administration’s public line on Turning Point’s role going forward.

Scoreboard watch

This gaggle is a scoreboard reference point: the President’s September 21, 2025 confirmation of the Presidential Medal of Freedom for Charlie Kirk, as stated aboard Air Force One, to be checked against the award ceremony record.

Sources: The White House, “President Trump Gaggles with the Press on Air Force One, Sep. 21, 2025” (official upload, embedded above). All characterizations as stated by the President in the gaggle.