How Charlie Kirk helped set Vance on a path to the vice presidency

Without Charlie Kirk, there might not be a Vice President JD Vance

Without Charlie Kirk, there might not be a Vice President JD Vance.

The prominent conservative activist, who was assassinated Wednesday while speaking on a college campus in Utah, was integral in Vance's rise in national politics from the earliest days.

Publicly, Kirk heralded Vance as a worthy Republican prospect — even when others in a party dominated by President Donald Trump had suspicions about Vance's Trump-skeptical past.

And, behind the scenes, Kirk was a matchmaker, connecting Vance with others who would be invaluable to helping him navigate a course from MAGA movement outsider to insider.

So when news of Kirk's death landed Wednesday afternoon, it landed particularly hard on Vance.