A blistering episode of the I’ve Had It podcast has set off a full-scale social media inferno after host Jennifer Welch branded conservative influencer Erika Kirk a “grifter” and blasted Kirk’s late husband as an “unrepentant racist.” Welch—known for her ferocious commentary—declared that Kirk should be “kicked to the curb,” igniting one of the podcast’s most polarizing controversies since its launch.
The backlash erupted after Welch and co-host Angie Sullivan responded to remarks Kirk made at a New York Times event, where the Turning Point USA CEO suggested that women voted for incoming New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani because they wanted government to replace relationships. Kirk warned that women should not postpone marriage or motherhood by “relying on the government to support you.”
Welch accused Kirk of peddling hypocrisy, pointing out that Kirk—while urging women to stay home and pursue family life—was simultaneously headlining events in Manhattan. “You are an opportunistic grifter who weaponizes your gender to demean women,” she said. “You are a walking, talking, breathing example as to why nobody wants to be a Christian or a female hypocrite such as yourself.”
She didn’t stop there. Welch accused Charlie Kirk, who was killed in September, of being “racist” and “homophobic,” while Sullivan emphasized that a woman’s identity should never be limited to being “someone’s wife or someone’s mother.” The comments split the internet instantly, with critics and fans descending into battle across platforms.
Some users blasted Welch as “one of the most unlikeable and despicable people I’ve ever seen,” while others dismissed both hosts as “old washed up feminists with many regrets.” Supporters, however, lauded Welch’s bluntness, praising her for “telling it like it is” and pushing back against what they viewed as regressive messaging.
The feud arrives as I’ve Had It continues its ascent, having earned a reputation for unapologetically progressive rhetoric. Hasan Piker once called it “the most radical progressive podcast in North America,” and the hosts recently interviewed Mamdani himself—the politician at the center of Kirk’s original criticism.
Meanwhile, Erika Kirk carried on with her media schedule. Just a day after Welch called her a “grifter,” she appeared on Hannity to promote her late husband’s book, Stop, in the Name of God: Why Honoring the Sabbath Will Transform Your Life. The book—completed one month before a gunman fatally shot Charlie Kirk on September 10—lays out the family’s deep commitment to Sabbath observance.
“He did not just write this book,” she told viewers. “He lived it.” She added that even nonreligious readers could find value in the practice, saying that honoring the Sabbath transformed her husband into a “next-level husband.”
As the feud rages on, both sides show no signs of backing down. The podcast hosts are doubling down on their critiques, Kirk continues to defend her family’s values on conservative media, and the internet—predictably—is eating up every second of the spectacle.
