Former Turning Point USA employee reveals what she did for Charlie Kirk’s company and why she quit

The nation was rocked this week when right-wing activist Charlie Kirk was fatally shot while debating publicly in Utah. While authorities continue to question the suspected gunman, whose arrest was announced on Friday, discussions on what it means for the political landscape fill the airwaves, screens and, of course, social media. One recent addition to the discourse has been that of a former employee of Kirk’s Turning Point USA organization.

Turning Point’s key turning point

When Caroline Calloway first joined the company, she thought she was “saving America.” Her work, she says in a video posted on TikTok, was to write articles designed to frighten and mobilize young conservatives against figures like Hillary Clinton and the “deep state.”

The video was amplified on X by Singer-songwriter/musician, and activist himself, Bill Madden, with more people watching Calloway explain how studying political science in college changed her outlook. Exposure to competing theories of governance, she said, created a “crisis of faith” that eventually pushed her to leave the movement entirely. “I thought I was protecting the country,” she reflected. “Then I realized I had to step away.” Here is that video.

Reaction to Turning Point exit claims

Social media is a dangerous place – angry people with limited means to debate tend to clog it up – and if Calloway hoped to spark reflection, the reaction online was anything but unified. Many users dismissed her story as vague, unconvincing, or self-indulgent. One described it as “the biggest nothing-burger of a video I’ve ever seen.”

Others took issue with her framing. Several commenters seized on her opening line – “as a privileged white woman” – as proof she was simply parroting liberal rhetoric. “I turned it off right there,” one reply read. Another anti-education person said bluntly: “She went to college and got brainwashed. Not really a new story.”

Some were harsher still, accusing her of exploiting the moment following Kirk’s death. One wrote: “There is a special place in hell for people like her.” Another called her testimony “absolutely vile.”

A few voices, however, urged restraint. “She said nothing bad about Charlie Kirk,” one defender wrote after seeing the bile. “We’ve all been 20 years old,” another said reflecting on the journey, while yet another admitted: “Looking forward to hearing more.”

Calloway insists her experience reflects a broader truth, that identities built on rigid ideology can collapse when tested against education and critical thinking. Madden, for his part, is clear that this makes hers an “important story” worth telling, one about an easily influenced teenager who found a way to think for herself.

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