He earned the nickname ‘the Trump whisperer’ due to his close bond with the President and his frequent, welcome visits to the White House and Mar-a-Lago.

This is why the shocking assassination of Charlie Kirk has profoundly affected the First Family, as revealed by insiders. They considered him part of their family.

One insider even stated that President Trump regarded Kirk as an ‘honorary’ son alongside his five biological children – Don Jr., Ivanka, Eric, Tiffany, and Barron.

Following Wednesday’s tragic event, the President’s shock has been apparent during his public appearances, and he was visibly emotional while remembering Kirk at the 9/11 memorial service held at the Pentagon on Thursday.

Despite Kirk’s immense social media following, insiders note that few were aware of the deep connection between the young conservative activist, the President, and his children, behind closed doors.

They explain that the relationship between Kirk and the Trumps went beyond the typical transactional political interactions. It was a deeply personal and sincere friendship, surpassing the often harsh realm of Washington’s political gamesmanship, according to those who knew them both well.

Despite their age difference Kirk, 31, was described by friends as an ‘old soul’ who connected with the 79-year-old president.

One friend of the First Family told the Daily Mail: ‘Our hearts are broken.’

Others close to the Trumps described Kirk as the ‘absolute best of us’ and ‘a great friend to us all.’

‘I know that the president felt very close to Charlie, he was like family,’ said House Speaker Mike Johnson.

In a tribute shared with the Daily Mail, Eric Trump said: ‘Mar-a-Lago was always such a special place for Charlie Kirk. He will be so sorely and forever missed.’ 

Perhaps the closest member of the First Family to Kirk, even more so than the president, was Donald Trump Jr.

The friendship between the two men went back years. In the early days of MAGA, they would campaign together on college campuses and face down hostile political audiences.

They had been in the political trenches together on the road and in the bearpit of social media.

At 47, Don Jr. was 16 years older, but he saw in Kirk a young man of great conviction who would carry the MAGA torch in the future. 

Don Jr.’s grief was clear in a tribute he wrote to a man he regarded as a sibling. 

‘I love you brother,’ the president’s eldest son wrote on X. ‘This isn’t my strong suit and I don’t even know how to begin to put into words the loss I am feeling right now. 

‘Charlie wasn’t just a friend – he was like a little brother to me – and to millions of people around the world – he was a true inspiration. He was one of the most courageous, principled men I’ve ever known.’

Kimberly Guilfoyle, Don Jr.’s former fiancée, was witness to the beginning of his relationship with his wife-to-be Erika Frantzve, a former Miss Arizona USA winner. The couple went on to have two young children, a daughter, now 3, and one-year-old son. Erika is currently studying for a doctorate in Biblical studies at Liberty University. 

Guilfoyle told the Daily Mail: ‘I actually remember being with Charlie the day of his first date with Erika and seeing their relationship build and blossom since then was so profound and powerful.

‘He was so excited and nervous, which was cute to see. And looking back, it’s clear he was really excited about that next chapter and to be such a devoted father and husband.’

She added: ‘He put faith and family at the center of his mission and his love for my dear friend Erika and their young children was just so beautiful to see.’

Lara Trump told the Daily Mail about the time she and Kirk spoke at an event at her alma mater, North Carolina State University, and there were threats protests could get out of control.

While she was flying in he texted her saying: ‘If you decide it’s too crazy and you want to sit this out, totally understand.’

‘But it was clear, with or without me, Charlie was going. If he was in, I was in,’ the President’s daughter-in-law told the Daily Mail. ‘He never flinched. The respect I gained for him that day was immense. 

‘There was never a single time that I asked him for help with something that he didn’t reply immediately to let me know that, of course, he would help. Whatever I needed.  There will only be one Charlie Kirk, and I’m honored to have called him a friend.’

Politically, the belief that Kirk, co-founder of youth organization Turning Point USA, changed history by getting young people to vote – and that without him there would be no Trump in the Oval Office for a second term – is a sentiment echoed across the MAGA sphere, and by the President’s family.

Lara Trump added: ‘I believe that Donald Trump probably would not be president right now without the assistance of Charlie Kirk. Charlie, you changed the world – you will be so deeply missed, my friend.’ 

One Republican consultant told the Daily Mail the impact Kirk had on young voters was seismic, and something the President was deeply appreciative of.

‘He was a tour de force for the conservative movement,’ the consultant said. ‘He helped make conservatism cool for the youth and showed millions of people how to fight in the battlefield of ideas with the facts and win.’

First Lady Melania Trump has also reflected movingly on the devastation of Kirk’s death on his family.  

‘Charlie’s children will be raised with stories instead of memories, photographs instead of laughter, and silence where their father’s voice should have echoed,’ the First Lady said.

‘Charlie Kirk’s life should serve as a symbolic reminder that compassionate awareness elevates family, love, and country.’

Ivanka Trump, meanwhile, shared a photograph of Kirk, Ericka and his two young children together.

‘Rest in Peace, Charlie,’ she wrote.

Trump’s esteem for Kirk is becoming clearer by the day. It was the President who confirmed his death publicly, and he ordered flags at the White House to fly at half-staff until Sunday.

Within the White House, where Kirk was also known as the ‘conservative boy wonder,’ there was stunned disbelief. He held no official staff position, but he was a constant presence, including in the Oval Office, and even vetted some of the President’s hires.

It was a meteoric rise which began in 2012 when, at the age of 18, he co-founded Turning Point USA, which now has over 250,000 student members and a presence on 3,500 high school and college campuses

President Trump frequently praised his ‘tremendous talent’ and said he was ‘just incredible.’

In 2020, he was the opening speaker at the Republican National Convention and, after the election defeat, remained close to Trump.

He then had a huge impact getting out the vote in battleground states.   

On Thursday morning, a clearly moved President Trump announced at the 9/11 ceremony at the Pentagon that he would be awarding Kirk the President Medal of Freedom. 

‘We miss him greatly,’ Trump told the crowd. ‘Yet I have no doubt that Charlie’s voice and the courage he put into the hearts of countless people, especially young people, will live on.’

As tributes poured in Bill White, a friend of both Kirk and the Trumps, told the Daily Mail: ‘A great light has been dimmed, and I can promise you this we will do great things to honor Charlie and keep his dream alive.’

White, who is Trump’s ambassador to Belgium, added: ‘His life will not have been in vain. You cannot put a light like Charlie’s out.’

Those who worked with Kirk said he had changed politics for good by the way he had brought young people into the Republican fold.

Trump 2024 communications advisor Alex Bruesewitz told the Daily Mail he was ‘a giant.’

‘He was a true patriot whose contributions to our nation and the MAGA movement over the past decade were surpassed only by President Trump.

‘We will all miss him dearly but we know his legacy will live for eternity.’

For more on this story – follow Daily Mail podcast ‘The Assassination of Charlie Kirk,’ out now wherever you get your podcasts or on YouTube.