Did Dave Portnoy blame Trump for Charlie Kirk’s death? What we know as Barstool Sports owner calls the President “divisive”

Dave Portnoy discussed Charlie Kirk's death on the September 11, 2025, episode of The Unnamed Show podcast. Previously, the Barstool Sports owner tweeted and said that Kirk's assassination was "one of the darkest days in American history."

Dave Portnoy said on the podcast episode that while he does not blame Donald Trump for Charlie Kirk's death, he believes the President's public image played a significant role in it.

Dave noted that a big portion of Americans "hate" Trump, even his face is supposedly "divisive."

"Politics definitely has a huge part in it. And when I say Trump has a huge part in it, I don't necessarily mean he's to blame for it, but he's so divisive, his face is just divisive. Like, people hate him so much, and the left and the right, the rhetoric, especially to me, the left is insane," Dave Portnoy stated.

Calling the left-wing supporters "insane," Dave Portnoy brought up Donald Trump's assassination attempt in July 2024. He noted how, in the initial hours, people commented enthusiastically on the incident.

When some people urged others to "tone down the rhetoric," they did. However, soon after, some people were reacting to the assassination attempt positively.

Dave Portnoy says Trump played a huge part in Charlie Kirk’s death,

“When I say Trump has a huge part in it, I don't necessarily mean he's to blame for it, but he's so divisive...”

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— Defiant L’s (@DefiantLs) September 11, 2025

Dave Portnoy recalled meeting Charlie Kirk two months ago

In the recent episode of The Unnamed Show podcast, the Barstool Sports owner shared that he met the political commentator two months ago at an event.

Portnoy noted that he did not completely agree with Charlie Kirk's political takes.

However, he asked Kirk two questions, the first one being how he had so much knowledge, and whether he screened the questions that came up during debates.

Charlie supposedly replied that he didn't screen questions beforehand, and he studied a lot, which helped him gain information.

Dave Portnoy then stated that the second question he asked was about security and how he held debates in massive campuses.

Charlie Kirk replied, saying that he had big security, and he was aware of the danger.

The NYC-based digital media company founder then stated that he felt unsafe at times despite not being a political commentator.

Portnoy recalled the argument he had with the podcast's co-host Kirk Minihane in June 2025.

He shared that the clip went viral, and while things were fine between them, netizens threatened him with numerous hate comments.

Dave Portnoy said that after that incident, he increased his security for some time, and he could not fathom the amount of hate Charlie Kirk faced on a daily basis, since he talked about politics.

"People who have no idea who I am, really no idea [of] you, aren't involved... and I'm getting truly horrific messages. It doesn't really bother me, but I think I said during that time, I had for the first time in my life 24/7 security, because all it takes is one lunatic," Dave Portnoy stated.

Meanwhile, Charlie Kirk's case is under FBI investigation. Two suspects were interrogated. However, they were released as the officers realised they were not involved in the shooting.

On Thursday (September 11, 2025), the FBI and Utah officials released video footage of the shooter running away after assassinating Charlie Kirk.

Pictures of the person have been released to the public.