'Auburn is a special place': President Trump calls into TPUSA event at Neville Arena

On Nov. 5, Auburn’s Turning Point USA (TPUSA) chapter hosted “This is the Turning Point Tour” in Neville Arena. The main speakers for the event were Senator Tommy Tuberville, Benny Johnson, Lara and Eric Trump. Lines formed for the event around 2:00 p.m. and the doors opened at 5:00 p.m.

“I think there’s a conservative movement going on in Gen Z. So, I think it’s great that we get to bring all the conservative young people together and hear from people who are [near] the administration,” Harrison Cerniway, a sophomore in biomedical sciences, said.

This event is part of a longer nationwide college campus tour that TPUSA announced on Sept. 22 in response to the assassination of their founder, Charlie Kirk, on Sept. 10 at a TPUSA college campus debate at Utah Valley University.

The list of speakers for the tour includes Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly and Glenn Beck. Last week, on Oct. 29, current Vice President J.D. Vance spoke alongside Charlie Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, at the TPUSA tour stop at Ole Miss. Notably, near the end of the event, Vice President J.D. Vance answered questions from the crowd.

“I think it’s important to reach out to young voters, and [the] young people of America, to teach them the truth of what’s important. We need to teach them the values that keep America going on the right track,” Connor Rye, a Sophomore in finance, said in response to TPUSA’s mission.

The tickets for this event were free and on a first-come, first-served basis, but Auburn students were given priority. Auburn students were let inside the building first, then outside general admission guests followed. Some attendees of note included Vice President Bobby Woodard and former Men’s Basketball Coach Bruce Pearl.

“I was always very inspired by Charlie [Kirk] and was amazed at his boldness and eloquence. So, I would have come [to the event] regardless, but now, it just seems so much more important with [the] divisiveness [surrounding his death]. This is the direction that we need to go,” said Dawn Barcola, Auburn graduate of 1978 in pharmacy.

By the time the event officially started, 6:50 p.m., the lower bowl and ground seating were full, and the upper section of the arena was nearly out of seats. Following the completion of the countdown on the center screen, Laine Schoneberger, managing partner and chief investment officer of Yrefy, the company that sponsored the tour, walked on the stage to start a “Charlie” chant.

Shortly after that, Tuberville approached the podium and received a warm “Auburn” welcome from the crowd. He first explained that he had been friends with Charlie Kirk since 2020, when Kirk was helping his election campaign.

He then stated that Kirk could relate to young people better than he ever could. Tuberville said that, even though he was supposed to introduce Kirk at this event before his death, attendees are still called to keep his legacy going.

He also explained that President Trump appointed Kirk and Tuberville to serve on the Board of Visitors at the U.S. Air Force Academy in March of this year to help raise the next leaders of this country.

“I’m telling you [this] as a so-called politician, politicians aren’t going to help you. It’s going to be your generation that gets this mess straightened out. Charlie worked with a lot of people to get the ball down the field to get this [TPUSA] going," Tuberville said. "Look at all the people in this building. We need to follow Charlie’s example by pursuing knowledge in this country and engaging in thorough debate. We are in a fight, folks, we are in a fight for our lives. I’m going to fight and I want you to fight."

Tuberville stated that he believes Kirk was assassinated because he was waking millions of people to the truth all at once.

Following Tuberville, Jacob Roose, the President of Auburn’s TPUSA chapter, went on stage to share that the first thing Kirk said to him when they met was “War Eagle.” After that, Roose thanked law enforcement, volunteers, Auburn’s TPUSA executive members, the founder of Auburn’s TPUSA chapter, Noah Durham and the people who helped him host this event.

Then Benny Johnson, an online conservative commentator and TPUSA contributor, entered the stage.

“In the words of Jossie Smollett, ‘This is MAGA country,’ and War Eagle,” Johnson said to begin his segment of the night.

Johnson would go on to recount Trump’s historic victory in 2016 against Hillary Clinton. He displayed pictures and clips on the screen in a slideshow-type format, including Trump’s viral “because you'd be in jail” rebuttal during the second 2016 Presidential Debate.

Later, after Benny continued to retell the history of President Trump’s rise to power and eventual loss in the 2020 election, he introduced Trump’s nominee to serve as NASA's administrator, Jared Isaacman, to the stage.

After reminiscing about Trump’s second Presidential victory a year ago to the day on, Nov. 5, 2024, Johnson concluded his remarks by explaining what he believes being “America First” is all about while displaying a picture of his family.

“Ladies and gentlemen, what’s it all for? That’s it [a picture of his family shown on the screen], this is what it’s all for. This is my family. This is my motivation. This is what keeps me going," Johnson said. "Since Charlie Kirk had such a profound effect on my life and helped Christ-center it, I can’t stop having babies. That is the motivator. This is what America First is all about.”

Johnson then transitioned into introducing the Trump family.

The three found their way to the four seats on the left side of the stage, with one draped in a now-infamous shirt reading “freedom” to symbolize the late TPUSA founder, Kirk. Once the crowd settled, Johnson moderated and asked questions about both Eric and Lara Trump's different roles in their father's campaigns, their life experiences, and how they initially met.

Nearly halfway through the conversation, Eric Trump asked the crowd whether or not he should call his father, President Trump, and the crowd responded unanimously in the affirmative.

“Hello, well I just want to say hello to everybody, and I hope Eric is doing a good job and Lara is doing a good job. Auburn is a special place. I have been there [Auburn] many times, and I know many people from that area, number one, and many people from that school. It’s a great school and we love Alabama. We won Alabama by 45 points, so we love it,” President Trump said. “But I just want to pay my respects to Charlie and Erika. These are two incredible people. Erika, I have spoken to her often; she is just a spectacular person. She is going to start where Charlie [Kirk] left off. We should have never allowed this to happen. One of the greatest people we have ever known, who was so responsible for our win. We love Charlie [Kirk], and he is looking down at us right now. As President of the United States, I love you all, and our country is doing great."

As President Trump looked to conclude the phone call with Eric, he shared with the crowd that he believes Charlie Kirk was partly responsible for the great things currently happening in America and that events with students like this can help continue that path forward.

“Eric, you better do a good job; these are smart people. If you are not doing a good job, they will report back to me. Goodnight, everybody,” President Trump jokingly said while ending the call.

After this, Eric and Lara continued to share memories of their time spent with President Trump, including their personal reactions when they heard the news of his attempted assassination, the release of his infamous mugshot and even his knowledge of the McDonald’s drive-thru menu.

Lastly, two hours into the event, members of the crowd were allowed to ask questions of Johnson, Eric and Lara Trump. The first question focused on Zohran Mamdani’s future as the mayor of New York City; however, the second question challenged Israel’s control over Trump’s decisions despite his recent comments towards Israeli Prime Minister B. Netanyahu led to a more engaged audience.

“There is no question my father [President Trump] expressed frustration [regarding Netanyahu]. Make no mistake, you have a nation [Iran] that is chanting death to America every single day on the streets of Tehran. You have a nation that will develop a nuclear weapon and will use it against the Western way of life. You have a nation that will use proxies around the world, whether it is Yemen or others, to inflict serious harm on this nation. What I can tell you about my father and Israel is that he wants a peaceful Middle East. He wants peace all around the world,” Eric Trump said in response to the question from a member of the audience.