The Erika Kirk Situation is Worse Than You Think
PDS Published 04/30/2026
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We've got to talk about this crazy Erica Kirk situation. MAGA street fight.
The disturbing new David murder case details, some huge Iran war developments, and how the Republicans are making a mad dash to try to rig the midterms. First, I have a quick, special guest.
Hey, guys. So I'm Lindsay DeFranco, and I'm running for Georgia State House in District 47. Let me show you the map, because a lot of people, because of gerrymandering, don't even know what district they're in. If you need to know, a district attorney candidate's website right here.
Now, look, my district encompasses some of northwest Roswell, northeast Alpharetta, Milton, and every home up in Cherokee County.
Very convenient. I will be bringing this everywhere with me now. Let me tell you a little secret. This seat in District 47 has been held by the same Republican for 24 years.
That's right. This district has not been competitive since 2002. And just to give you a little detail on how long that's been, I was 12. I was 12 the last time the seat was up for grabs.
And it's not just my seat. The Georgia State House is ten seats away from flipping it from red to blue. Just ten seats. And the math is there. The math works. And we really have a good shot this year. And I think the Republicans are kind of scared.
We are so close to being able to break through a Republican supermajority that has held this state for decades. The district has changed. The state has changed.
And fortunately, I don't have a primary opponent. So I will be on the ballot in November no matter what. However, the frontrunner to run against me on the Republican side is a 24-year-old, 24-year-old who was handpicked by the Republican establishment.
And one of his most notable endorsements came from a Georgia fake elector, a Georgia fake elector who is now a state senator.
Yeah. He's endorsed by a Republican who signed a fraudulent document after the 2020 election, claiming that Trump actually won Georgia when he didn't. Percolate on that a little bit.
I'm not exaggerating. You can go look it up. Here's the deal. The Georgia fundraising deadline is tonight at midnight.
And while Phil and I have put in a bunch of our own money because we truly believe that we can win this race, the fact of the matter is, in general, Republicans are able to put more money into politics, but also especially in this district.
It's the Republican Party that has more money. And I believe that once they realize what they're really up against, they're going to pump in a lot more.
So how can you help? I'm so glad you asked. You can go to LindsayForGA.com.
That's L-I-N-D-S-A-Y-F-O-R-G-A dot com and click on donate.
There's a big donate button at the top, and chip in whatever you can: $5, $10, $25, $100, $500, $5,000, $500,000, $5 million. You know, whatever you can do.
We all deserve representation that delivers on affordability, health care, strong and safe communities, fully funded public schools, and more opportunity. Not just more of the same with a different tie.
Your government should work as hard as you do. And one more thing.
As most of us know, yesterday the Supreme Court decided to gut the Voting Rights Act, or what was left of it.
So if there was ever a time to put your money behind people who are trying to hold the line in Georgia, it's now. The time is now.
LFG, which stands for Lindsey for Georgia. Thank you so much for your time. I love you so much. I guess you can have Phil back now.
Erica Kirk just hit at Candace Owens, Druski, journalists, and even teachers and American citizens.
With Kirk posting a video addressing the White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting, which she attended. And she started by saying this:
"Seems to me that nothing will ever be enough for the evil in this world. Our country has become unrecognizable. These people have perverted the truth to the point that they motivated the murder of my husband. They have continuously tried to assassinate the president."
You know, you have many of her supporters waiting for this, because the video from the dinner showed Erica leaving after the shooting in tears, saying she just wanted to go home.
You also had some questioning why she went in the first place, with some noting that she previously backed out of a Turning Point event with JD Vance because of security threats, even though Secret Service would be present.
But seemingly, it was because she wanted to confront reporters head on.
"Because many of the journalists in that room have attempted to dehumanize me. And I wanted to meet some of them face to face, quite frankly. Why have a conversation about me when you can have a conversation with me?"
With Erica seeming to take issue with the fact that reporters from opposing outlets were spending the night playing nice, even though they knew the next day they'd return to conflict and infighting.
Then she was also upset with their choice to immediately pull out their phones after shots broke out.
"And so during an active shooting, these journalists are using their phones to find moments to capture for clips. They were so concerned about getting a video in a room with an active shooter that they could have accidentally, and quite literally, filmed themselves being shot. Many of those people have become so desensitized that fight or flight became secondary to the opportunity of putting themselves into the story."
Erica then taking aim at the suspected shooter, who's a teacher and engineer from California, but then also not just hitting him, but all teachers.
"This is why Charlie started Turning Point USA in the first place. He didn't trust the radicalized liberal teachers. You have these people who are supposed to be teaching our children, the future of this country. And he's so unhinged that he is able to teach children by day and then attempt to murder the president of the United States by night."
"And in his manifesto, he starts by contextualizing himself by saying, 'I am a citizen of the United States of America.' And while we may have big problems with illegal immigration in this country, I have to tell you, we have an even bigger problem when it comes to this systemic indoctrination and radicalization of our own citizens. This is what got my husband killed."
You then had Erica Kirk expressing sympathy for Melania Trump for having to endure multiple assassination attempts against her husband.
She also called out anyone who she thinks mocked it, starting with Jimmy Kimmel.
And then she focused on what she's dealt with personally since Charlie was killed.
"Every morning I wake up to a new headline lying about me. I have comedians dressing up in white face. I have people saying I'm not fit to be CEO, and I have Candace Owens claiming I murdered my husband."
She's clearly referring to the bit that Druski did where he dressed up as a white Republican woman who loves pyrotechnics.
Then, of course, there's Candace Owens, who has spent months stringing together webs of conspiracies about Charlie's death.
Though, depending on who you ask, you'll get varying answers as to whether or not Candace has actually implicated Erica of any wrongdoing.
You actually had Candace shooting back pretty quickly to defend herself, first on Twitter, writing:
"Very uncomfortable to watch. Painful prompter read a speech clearly written by someone else. Also, of everything I've said about Erica, she chooses to respond to something I never said. They always lie. When people correctly point out that she lied, they will inevitably tell us it's our fault for noticing. Because she's lost her husband. It's a merry-go-round from hell."
Then actually later on her show, she added:
"It's nobody's fault that Erica went to that event other than Erica."
Candace is also slamming Erica for being upset with journalists who filmed amid the shooting, arguing that people did the same thing when Charlie was shot.
And again, you had her rejecting that she's ever directly claimed that Erica killed Charlie.
"The performance of all this is not good. Just an obvious lie. She wakes up to headlines and Candace Owens saying that she killed her husband. The widow grift and trying to tell us that she's allowed to lie to us because her husband died is so on its face absurd that it should be rejected by all people everywhere."
Also on Instagram, you had Candace claiming that TPUSA would be using the White House Correspondents' Dinner as an excuse to cancel future events and tours with Erica.
Then, of course, with all this, there were other reactions aside from Candace.
There were plenty of people backing Erica up, applauding her message and choice to defend herself, condemning Candace.
Well, yes, when you go to different places, you get a number of different reactions.
Most of the reactions we've been able to find in this video, they were pretty negative.
There were just a ton of people making fun of her outfit, saying that she's calling out an assassination attempt while dressed like an assassin meets member of Fall Out Boy.
Others just replying or reposting very distinct facial expressions she made.
People also face-swapping her with Druski.
Others also hoping Druski clowns on her.
A number of people think that, you know, all she's doing with these kinds of videos is turning public favor away from her.
Also at the same time, people thinking that she's just pushing more eyes towards what is the Druski skit? What is Candace Owens saying?
But with all this, this is where you wait to see what happens next.
I got to ask you, what are your thoughts, opinions, and reactions to everything we just saw? Just let me know in those comments down below.
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Though also, I'll say this is not the only story that people are dissecting online right now.
This next one does involve the person at the center of it being accused of murder, because we now have the details on the allegations against D4vd on the murder and dismemberment of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez.
If you're not the most familiar with D4vd, he's that singer who got his start making music for Fortnite videos on YouTube, got very popular online very fast, played at Coachella, went platinum, even opened for SZA in 2023.
Then last year, his fame turned into infamy when the body of a teenager was discovered in the trunk of his Tesla.
There were headlines about it in September of last year, with police responding to reports of a foul smell coming from a car impounded at the Hollywood tow lot. The car had reportedly been abandoned and towed.
But when police got there to check out the smell, they found Celeste's remains, with them finding out that the car was registered to D4vd, whose legal name is David Burke, and he was connected to the case as a suspect.
And all of this ended up with D4vd canceling the rest of his tour for his first full-length album. But he also wasn't officially arrested until earlier this month.
And now we've got these court filings from prosecutors that outline a very, very horrific chain of events, both leading up to Celeste's death and afterwards.
According to prosecutors, David met Celeste when she was just 11 years old, and they, quote, "began a sexual relationship two years later when he was 18 and she was 13."
Personally, that just sounds like a crime to me. But again, I'm just reporting what they're saying.
And also during this time, Celeste ran away from home and was reported missing in February of 2024.
Police reportedly contacted David, who said that he had only met Celeste once and didn't know that she was a minor.
But then when Celeste reportedly returned home and had her phone taken away by her parents, according to prosecutors, David paid one of Celeste's friends $1,000 to get another phone to her so they could continue talking.
Then later, she was reported missing again in April of 2024, and she reportedly spent most of that year traveling with David and going to his house in the Hollywood Hills.
Then we get to April of 2025, with the filing saying that Celeste and David had gotten into an argument over text.
They say they argued about, quote, "the victim's jealousy over the defendant's relationships with other women, as defendant led her to believe they had a future together."
With the filing adding she became extremely upset and threatened to disclose damaging information about her relationship with the defendant to end his career and destroy his life.
Then on April 23rd, prosecutors say that David sent over an Uber to pick up Celeste at her home at around 8:40 p.m. and bring her to his place in the Hollywood Hills.
When she arrived a little after 10, prosecutors say that David stabbed her, saying he knew he had to silence the victim before she ruined his music career as she had threatened.
"Very soon after her arrival at his home, defendant stabbed the victim to death multiple times and stood by while she bled out."
David also sent Celeste a message around 10:30 asking where she was.
But according to prosecutors, that was just a way that he was trying to cover his tracks.
They then go on to say that David bought a couple of chainsaws online and used those to cut Celeste's body apart inside of an inflatable pool in his garage, where prosecutors say that her DNA was found.
They say he also bought a body bag and heavy-duty laundry bags online to stuff her remains.
Then it also doesn't stop there.
David is also accused of cutting off two of Celeste's fingers because reportedly they had identifying tattoos, including his name on her left ring finger.
Though, with this, neither of Celeste's fingers have been recovered.
With prosecutors saying, "Defendant took horrifying measures to destroy and discard the victim's body."
With them adding that he drove over 100 miles, three separate times, to get rid of the evidence, including Celeste's passport.
And he allegedly kept her body in the trunk of his car for months, lying to friends and business associates when asked about the smell.
And then on top of all this, when he was arrested, prosecutors say that they also found tons of nude images of Celeste on his phone.
With all of that, as of now, David has pleaded not guilty to all the charges against him, including first-degree murder, lewd and lascivious acts with a person under 14, and mutilating a dead body.
And while all those charges make him eligible for the death penalty, prosecutors say that they haven't decided whether to pursue it.
And as far as his attorneys, they gave a statement when he was arrested, saying:
"Actual evidence in this case will show that David Burke did not murder Celeste Rivas Hernandez, and he was not the cause of her death."
Saying, "There has been no indictment returned by any grand jury in this case and no criminal complaint filed. David has only been detained under suspicion. We will vigorously defend David's innocence."
As of right now, they haven't given their side of the story yet.
We do know, though, that the evidentiary hearing has been postponed to the end of May, so it's likely going to be a while before we get any real conclusion.
And then there's more we've got to dive into in just a minute.
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And the other big story today is that Microsoft is reportedly slowing or pausing a number of data center projects, and that has a lot of people asking what it means for AI demand.
According to analysts and reporting from Bloomberg, Microsoft has either delayed, scaled back, or walked away from several planned data center leases and developments across the United States and internationally.
That includes projects in places like Wisconsin, Illinois, North Dakota, the United Kingdom, Indonesia, and Australia.
The immediate reaction from some investors was, "Wait, is AI demand cooling off already?"
And that's the billion-dollar—or more accurately, trillion-dollar—question.
Because Microsoft has been one of the biggest spenders in the AI arms race, pouring enormous amounts of capital into infrastructure to support both its own products and its partnership with OpenAI.
But according to the company, this isn't some giant retreat. Microsoft says it still plans to spend more than $80 billion on AI infrastructure this fiscal year.
The company framed these moves as routine adjustments—basically saying, "We're still building a lot, just not necessarily every project we originally considered."
Analysts have pointed out that hyperscalers like Microsoft often overbook capacity early, then fine-tune later based on actual demand, energy availability, and construction timelines.
So this could just be a case of the market reading too much into normal corporate planning.
That said, investors are understandably sensitive right now.
AI valuations have been built on the assumption of explosive, sustained infrastructure growth. Any hint that spending could moderate tends to rattle nerves.
And Microsoft isn't the only one under the microscope. Similar questions have been raised about spending levels at other cloud giants like Amazon and Google.
Still, demand for AI compute remains extremely strong. Model training, inference, enterprise adoption—none of that appears to be slowing in any meaningful way.
This looks less like an AI bubble popping and more like one of the biggest companies on Earth adjusting where and when it deploys capital.
So, no, the robots are not going back into storage just yet.
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Now, does that mean there's zero risk of overbuilding?
Absolutely not.
Tech has a long and colorful history of getting a little too excited about the future. Sometimes that excitement is justified. Sometimes it ends with a lot of empty office space and very awkward earnings calls.
The real question is whether current infrastructure investments will generate enough long-term demand to justify today's spending.
Right now, enterprise AI adoption is still in the early innings.
Companies are experimenting, integrating, and figuring out where AI actually delivers measurable value.
That process takes time.
So while short-term volatility is inevitable, the long-term thesis for AI infrastructure remains very much intact.
There will almost certainly be winners, losers, and at least a few hilariously expensive mistakes along the way.
That's capitalism with extra GPUs.
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The takeaway here is pretty straightforward.
Microsoft slowing some projects does not mean AI is suddenly over.
It means even the largest companies in the world constantly reassess where to place their bets.
Markets tend to treat every adjustment like a prophecy. Sometimes a construction delay is just a construction delay.
And for now, the evidence still suggests that the race for AI dominance is accelerating, not slowing.
So investors will keep watching, analysts will keep theorizing, and somewhere, a data center contractor is still having a very, very good year.
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And that is where today's show ends.
A lot happening right now, from creator controversies to massive shifts in the AI economy, and plenty more in between.
As always, I'd love to know what you're thinking about any of today's stories. Which one stood out to you the most? What do you think happens next?
Jump down to the comments and let me know.
And of course, if you enjoyed this breakdown, hit that like button, subscribe, and share the show with someone who might find it interesting.
Thank you for watching, for listening, and for being a part of this community.
I'll see you next time.
