Hundreds of mostly young people turned out at the University of Idaho to see conservative commentators Matt Walsh and Michael Knowles, the final stop on Turning Point USA’s spring tour.
Chloe Moes and Marissa Aten traveled long distances to be there. Moes, 20, drove from California and said she comes for Knowles’ content. “I just listen to Michael Knowles. I love watching his stuff,” she said. “I’m really interested in just going to see different conversations.” Aten, 23, drove from Nevada and said Turning Point USA material helped her shape arguments in debates on topics like abortion and immigration. “I’ve had conversations that were a lot of the frequent topics of Turning Point’s and learning different things to say and how to answer those questions better to try to change their minds,” she said.
The University of Idaho stop drew noticeably more energy than some earlier tour dates. While other events on the tour sometimes had sparse crowds or cancellations — for example an April University of Georgia event where Erika Kirk, CEO of Turning Point USA, did not appear citing security concerns, and an April 30 Iowa State event that was canceled — the Idaho rally featured a long line of attendees hours before doors opened. Volunteers with TPUSA handed out free hats and small American flags, helped with voter registration and staffed merchandise tables.
Although the arena typically seats more than 4,000, the host said the event’s capacity was sharply reduced after requests from the organization; seating ultimately was limited to 869. That left many people turned away at the door, prompting Knowles to apologize from the stage: “I’m very sorry for the over 1,000 people who did not make it in the room tonight, but who wanted to be here.” Turning Point USA did not provide a public explanation for the reductions.
Rather than a scripted lecture, Walsh and Knowles spent most of the roughly two-hour event taking questions from the audience. TPUSA did not require questioners to give names before speaking. Several exchanges turned into back-and-forth debates, reflecting the contestatory campus politics that helped build Turning Point’s profile.
One audience member challenged a graph Walsh had cited in a YouTube video alleging a rising number of mass shooters were transgender, leading to a contentious onstage exchange about the accuracy and intent of the claim. Another attendee questioned Walsh and Knowles about their continued defense of the Department of Justice and former President Trump in connection with handling of documents tied to Jeffrey Epstein; that too prompted a debate-style back-and-forth.
Other questions focused on the Republican Party’s direction. A 17-year-old in the crowd argued the GOP is shifting toward an “America First” posture and criticized foreign influence from countries like China and Mexico; the audience applauded. Knowles said he was encouraged by how Gen Z views are reshaping Republican conversations: “It’s actually very encouraging that especially young people are shaking up the way that the GOP talks about issues, whether we’re talking about foreign policy or whether we’re talking about economic policy.”
When asked whether the MAGA movement is dying and what Republicans will stand for after Trump, Walsh pushed back on the idea that MAGA is dead while acknowledging the possibility that a distinct MAGA faction might not define the post‑Trump GOP. “What’s going to define it for the next ten years?” he asked, urging young conservatives to join the debate over the party’s future.
The Idaho event closed the tour with an emphasis on audience engagement and on-stage debate. Against the backdrop of the college town’s rolling hills and wheat fields, Walsh and Knowles’ willingness to take questions, argue with attendees and encourage political participation produced an energetic finish to a tour that has had mixed responses at different stops. For many attendees, including Moes and Aten, the live exchange and the chance to hear and challenge speakers in person made the trip worthwhile.