Free speech advocate to Charlie Kirk critics: 'I don't want them to have free speech!'

Conservative radio host and frequent free speech advocate Dennis Kneal declared he didn’t want certain critics of right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk to “have free speech” during an appearance on Newsmax Wednesday.

Kneel’s comments came amid a discussion on the Trump administration having revoked at least six visas from individuals who made disparaging comments about Kirk in the wake of his killing last month. Those visa revocations came in the wake of Attorney General Pam Bondi vowing to prosecute Americans over “hate speech,” remarks that saw significant pushback from legal experts and MAGA faithful alike.

Another guest on the panel was Andrew Craft, a journalist with Fox News, who noted that the Trump administration’s revocation of visas over comments may spark “an interesting free speech case” should “those six foreigners contest it in court.”

Kneal, who’s repeatedly championed free speech and has complained about free speech being eroded in the United States, didn’t mince words when making his position on the visa revocations clear.

“On one hand, I’m all for free speech,” Kneal said. “But if someone’s coming here and undermining the country and wants to topple our government, then to heck with them, I don’t want them to have free speech! Especially if they are here as our guests.”

Kneal, who once declared “free speech” to be “everything,” was largely agreed with on the panel, with Newsmax host Sharla McBride voicing concerns that migrants who criticized Kirk in the wake of his killing “could have violent tendencies.”

“It’s really concerning when you have people who are here illegally to begin with, but then they're praising someone’s death, they’re celebrating a murder in broad daylight,” McBride said, despite the legal status of the visa holders still unknown. “So yeah, I think many of us here would agree that at least revoking those visas is a good idea because these people could have violent tendencies.”

The Trump administration has championed its targeting of Kirk’s critics, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio declaring that migrants critical of Kirk were “not welcome in this country.”

"If you are here on a visa and cheering on the public assassination of a political figure, prepare to be deported," Rubio said.