ITV GMB guest sparks outrage with ‘abhorrent’ Charlie Kirk remarks as he compares him to ‘KKK leader’ just hours after his death
Good Morning Britain viewers have been left furious following comments made by one of its guests on Thursday’s show during a discussion about the death of American political commentator, Charlie Kirk.
Mr Kirk was shot in the neck while speaking to a crowd at Utah Valley University on Wednesday. As of Thursday morning, a suspect remains at large.
Tributes from far and wide have poured in for Mr Kirk, including from President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
Mr Starmer said: “My thoughts this evening are with the loved ones of Charlie Kirk. It is heartbreaking that a young family has been robbed of a father and a husband.
“We must all be free to debate openly and freely without fear – there can be no justification for political violence.”
Reform UK’s Nigel Farage echoed the sentiment voiced by the prime minister. Mr Farage characterised Kirk as “a very happy, committed family man” with “fundamentally strong, Christian beliefs.”
Discussing his death on Thursday morning on ITV were GMB regular hosts Kate Garraway and Ed Balls. The duo had welcomed Michael Gove and Nels Abbey onto the programme to discuss further.
However, Mr Abbey’s remarks have been widely condemned after he compared Mr Kirk to David Duke, the former leader of the Ku Klux Klan, when he reeled off his opinion on the tragic incident.
Mr Gove was first to speak on Mr Kirk’s death. “He was a sort of Cicero for the TikTok age,” he began.
“He was someone who deliberately set out to debate on campuses across the country in order to spread the MAGA message, the Trump gospel.
“He was an evangelical Christian, a convinced Conservative, and actually a very attractive speaker who had been very successful in convincing younger voters to vote for Trump.”
Mr Gove went on: “His assassination is – and this is the tragedy – the latest political assassination to afflict America.”
Mr Abbey soon chipped in to share his thoughts. “Can I just say something? I don’t believe he was a Cicero for the TikTok age, I believe he was a David Duke for the TikTok age,” Mr Abbey said.
When Ms Garraway asked Mr Abbey to clarify who that was, he replied: “He was the former Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan.
“Now, this is by no means trying to justify his murder. Political violence is wrong at home; it’s wrong abroad. Political violence must be condemned, as must the propagandising for political violence and the dehumanisation of people.
“Charlie Kirk was somebody who… I shiver, particularly for Conservatives when he’s described as Conservative, because he wasn’t. He was quite clearly and comfortably a supremacist.”
Ms Garraway interjected to point out that Mr. Kirk often made his beliefs and opinions known during debates, where he would receive “very vigorous debate back,” and that this constituted “freedom of speech.”
Mr Abbey replied: “I agree with that, I’m not here to justify or even contextualise his murder. I abhor political violence, and I abhor gun violence too.
“He was outright on camera saying it’s worthy for the purposes of the Second Amendment or so that a few people being murdered by guns is a worthy sacrifice for the Second Amendment.
“The problem is that… why people like us who speak from a position of empathy, where we come from, is the belief it could be us one day, he never thought that it could be him, and he felt somewhat invincible, and sadly it happened to him.
“The very sort of people he helped dehumanise over the years… the exact same thing that he sort of helped to legitimise for them has happened to him.
“It’s sad, it’s wrong, but there’s a moral lesson in here too, which is to recognise your own vulnerability, be more empathetic, don’t propagandise for people’s murder. It could happen to you.”
The conversation soon moved on, with Mr Balls pointing out the dangers of how quickly Mr Kirk’s death was politicized by both sides.
The discussion, which was held under the banner of “US Right-Wing Activist Shot in Utah” on the show, soon sparked outrage as viewers took issue with Mr Abbey’s characterisation of Mr Kirk.
Taking to X, one viewer furiously reacted to the debate: “Nels Abbey on Good Morning Britain just compared Charlie Kirk to a KKK leader and called him a white supremacist… whilst pretending to show some sympathy for the murder. Shameful, considering it is less than 24 hours since the event. R.I.P.”
A second echoed: “@nelsabbey, your comments on @gmb lacked empathy. You used the platform to vilify Charlie Kirk.
“Charlie Kirk didn’t read from scripts; he was open and transparent and often provoked young minds to be more diverse in their approach and way of thinking towards challenging topics.”
Another also hit out at Mr Abbey: “Disgusted by Nels this morning – hosts should have stepped in!!!! – his tone and comparisons were abhorrent.”
WATCH HERE: Donald Trump addresses America after Charlie Kirk’s ‘assassination’
Elsewhere, a fourth fumed: “Nels didn’t look good that bud. Dislike someone all you like, but he just gave a different viewpoint to students. He left a wife and young family, and for what ‘talking/debating’? You need to look at yourself.”
“I really can’t believe what I’ve just watched on your show this morning regarding Charlie Kirk,” a fifth raged. “Who is this Nels Abbey? Absolutely disgusting what he has just said. This poor man has been murdered, think about his wife and kids.”
And a sixth weighed in: “@GMB Allowing Nels Abbey airtime to smear Charlie Kirk as some kind of KKK leader and claim it’s ‘his own fault’ is an absolute disgrace.
“It’s vile, slanderous, and deeply disrespectful. #gmb.” (sic)