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J.D. Vance said Charlie Kirk's death influenced his wife Usha's decision to have a fourth child.
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«Something changed with Usha, and shortly after my friend’s funeral, she became pregnant with our fourth child, a boy,» the vice president writes in his upcoming book,« Communion: Finding Your Way Back to Faith.".
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Kirk, a right-wing political commentator and father of two, was shot to death at age 31 on September 10.
J.D. Vance said Charlie Kirk's death influenced his wife Usha Vance's decision to have more children.
In an excerpt from his forthcoming book, published in The Wall Street Journal , the vice president, who is currently expecting his fourth child with his wife, wrote about how Kirk's fatal shooting at age 31 in Utah in September was a factor in Usha's decision to have another child.
«"As my wife hugged Charlie Kirk's widow on the first day of her terrible grief, Erica [Kirk] sobbed and told Usha she was sorry she and Charlie only had two children," J.D., 41, wrote in his book,» Communion: Finding Your Way Back to Faith, which will be released on June 16.
«"I'd been asking Usha for years to have another child, and for years she'd been telling me she'd had enough, especially now that public service had thrust us into the national spotlight," he continued. "But something changed for Usha, and shortly after my friend's funeral, she became pregnant with our fourth child, a boy.".
Usha and J.D. Vance, May 19, 2025. Photo: Simone Risoluti – Vatican Media via Vatican Pool/Getty
Charlie, a right-wing political commentator, was shot and killed at Southern Utah University on September 10, 2025.
A political activist and co-founder of Turning Point USA, founded in 2012, he was a husband and father of two. In May 2021, he married former Miss Arizona USA Erica Franzva, and the couple welcomed a daughter in August 2022 and a son in May 2024.
On September 18, the Turning Point USA board of directors unanimously voted to appoint Erica as the organization's next CEO and chairperson. A few days later, on September 21, Erica delivered the eulogy at Kirk's funeral, which took place at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
«"I don't know why God does these things," the vice president, a Catholic, wrote in his book, "but I am grateful that we will soon have another source of joy in our lives, another beautiful soul to admire and fall in love with, a beautiful creation of God.".
In another passage in the book, J.D. revealed that he turned to Charlie for advice on how to cope with his family's growing prominence during the 2024 presidential campaign. He recounted how he sometimes felt like he "ruined [his then-7-year-old son's] life without even asking his advice" when he began his campaign.
J.D. wrote that Charlie then told him, "Don't try to convince your son it's not a sacrifice. It is. Just try to take comfort in the fact that it's a worthy sacrifice. I'll pray for you.".
Charlie Kirk, July 31, 2024. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty
The vice president also revealed how he learned of Charlie's death from messages in a group chat.
«"I walked out of my office, and my staff looked like they'd seen a ghost," he recalled. "'Charlie's been shot,' my chief of staff, Jacob, told me. 'The situation looks grim.'".
«"Of course, my biggest hope was that he would survive for the sake of his wife and children. And for about an hour after he was shot, I thought that was possible. We prayed for God to save him. But God had other plans," J.D. continued.
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The second couple are parents to three children: Evan, 9, Vivek, 6, and Mirabelle, 4, and announced in an Instagram post in January that they were expecting another son.
«"Usha and the baby are doing well, and we all look forward to his arrival at the end of July," the Instagram post reads. Usha could become the second high-profile vice president's wife to give birth while serving as Second Lady.
Read the original article on People.