Pam Bondi Says DOJ Has Eyes On Company That Turned Away Customers Over Kirk Poster

Attorney General Pam Bondi said Monday on Fox News’ “Hannity” that the Department of Justice is looking into Office Depot after a Michigan employee allegedly refused to print a poster for a vigil honoring Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.

Since Kirk’s assassination on Wednesday, hundreds of leftists, including educators, have been fired after publicly posting celebratory responses to his murder. Fox News’ Sean Hannity called the reactions “incomprehensible” and asked Bondi if there was a “legal issue” from her perspective as attorney general. (RELATED: ‘Why The Hell Do You Have To Echo That Crap To Us?’: Gutfeld Explodes On Tarlov After She Tiptoes Around Kirk Killing)

“Well, sure, we all believe in the First Amendment, and these people speak horrible, horrible things. I think yesterday or today, Sean, a school board member right here in Virginia had to resign because she said horrible things about Charlie Kirk and that he deserved to die,” Bondi said. “That’s horrific. It’s free speech, but you shouldn’t be employed anywhere if you’re going to say that. And employers, you have an obligation to get rid of people.”

“You need to look at people who are saying horrible things, and they shouldn’t be working with you. Businesses cannot discriminate. If you want to go in and print posters with Charlie’s pictures on them for a vigil, you have to let them do that,” Bondi added. “We can prosecute you for that. I have Harmeet Dhillon right now in our civil rights unit looking at that immediately, that Office Depot had done that. We’re looking at that.”

Attorney and Republican activist Matthew DePerno posted on X Friday that the Kalamazoo County Republican Party had placed a $56.17 order at 2:24 p.m. for a poster. About three hours later, DePerno said a store print supervisor named “Beryl” called to inform them the order would not be fulfilled, allegedly saying the poster was “propaganda.”

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After DePerno’s post circulated online, Office Depot released a statement on X apologizing for the employee’s behavior and confirming the employee had been terminated.

Bondi went on to praise Kirk, saying that despite leftist responses to his death, “young people” are now “coming out of the woodwork” to support TPUSA and Kirk’s movement.

“But Sean, you know, they thought they could silence Charlie. All of this chatter, all of this hate, they couldn’t silence Charlie. What they’ve done is they have created an army of people,” Bondi said. “I think millions of young people are coming out of the woodwork now. I think we’re going to see a lot of young women as well being very vocal in their conservative values.”

“Charlie was deeply, deeply religious. We all knew that. And he wore his faith on his sleeve. I think you’re going to be seeing a lot more young people not be afraid to show their religion and to come out publicly,” Bondi said. “I think Erika Kirk has done a great job encouraging young people to do just that in Charlie’s memory. They thought they silenced him, and it was the opposite.”

In their public response Friday, Office Depot condemned the Michigan employee’s “completely unacceptable and insensitive” behavior, saying it violated company policies and did not reflect the retailer’s values. The company said it had contacted DePerno, launched an internal review, and confirmed the employee was no longer with the organization.

Despite vitriol from some Democrats, TPUSA has seen rapid growth online and on campuses. According to Kirk’s executive producer Andrew Kolvet, the group received more than 32,000 inquiries in just 48 hours to start new chapters. By comparison, TPUSA currently has “900 official college chapters and around 1,200 high school chapters, with a presence on 3,500 total,” Kolvet wrote on X.

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