Vice President JD Vance has pulled out of a Turning Point USA event at Iowa State University, the latest cancellation in a string of troubled campus appearances that have dogged the conservative organisation's spring tour.
The event, scheduled for 30 April, was set to feature Vance alongside Turning Point USA (TPUSA) CEO Erika Kirk, the widow of the group's founder, Charlie Kirk. TPUSA told supporters the vice president was 'forced to cancel his appearance due to a scheduling conflict,' blaming unexpectedly scheduled congressional votes.
The organisation went a step further. In an email to ticketholders, TPUSA explicitly stated the cancellation was 'not due to security concerns related to recent events.' That pointed denial referenced the 25 April shooting at the White House Correspondents' Association (WHCA) dinner, where a gunman charged a security checkpoint at the Washington Hilton while President Donald Trump, Vance, and hundreds of journalists were inside.
The Iowa cancellation follows a disastrous TPUSA event at the University of Georgia earlier this month. Vance took the stage at Akins Ford Arena on 14 April to an audience that filled only about a quarter of the venue. Photos of rows of empty seats went viral.
Turning Point USA seems to have misestimated crowd size for Vance. Akins Ford Arena less than 25% filled for the vice president.pic.twitter.com/K2SnkmuATh
Kirk was originally set to interview Vance on stage, but pulled out, citing security threats. A Secret Service source later told CBS News there were no 'credible threats' tied to the event or venue. TPUSA spokesperson Andrew Kolvet blamed the poor turnout on left-wing protesters who he claimed had reserved tickets and not shown up.
The fallout went beyond bad optics. Caroline Mattox, president of TPUSA's University of Georgia chapter, resigned days after the event, posting a statement on Instagram.
'Charlie spent his life fighting for truth, and I do not believe he would stand for the blatant dishonesty now being spread by the organisation that he built,' Mattox wrote. She said it had become 'abundantly clear' that TPUSA's 'mission and purpose have been lost along the way.'
A post shared by Caroline Mattox (@thecarolinemattox)
Mattox wasn't alone. In March, the University of Arkansas TPUSA chapter unanimously voted to cut ties with the national organisation and rebranded as Young American Revival. Former chapter president Dino Fantegrossi said members were 'put off by how Charlie Kirk has been used by TPUSA since his assassination.'
Source: International Business Times UK
