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Jennifer Welch and Angie Sullivan, hosts of the I’ve Had It podcast, have apologized for laughing at a joke about Charlie Kirk during an episode about reactions to the 2026 midterm results.
In a joint statement posted to the podcast’s Instagram account on November 7, the hosts called the joke insensitive and said they regretted laughing. The segment was later cut from the episode, and Cash App said it was no longer a sponsor of the show.
The hosts also said they had donated to Everytown for Gun Safety. Kirk, a conservative organizer, was fatally shot on September 10, 2025, while speaking at a college event in Utah.
What the hosts said about the joke
The episode was released on November 5, two days before Welch and Sullivan posted their apology. During the show, the hosts read social media posts about the midterm election results, including one that joked about digging up Kirk. Both laughed after reading it.
The post read: “We’re digging up Charlie Kirk and doing it again.” The segment containing the exchange was subsequently removed from the episode, though it was also reshared online.
The distinction between the post and the hosts’ reaction is central to their apology. Welch and Sullivan were reading someone else’s social media post when they laughed; their statement took responsibility for that response.
“It was an insensitive joke, and we should not have laughed. We regret it, and we apologize,” they wrote.
They also addressed the violence behind the joke: “Whatever our political differences, there is nothing funny about gun violence.” The pair said they had long supported gun safety reform and had made a donation to Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun violence prevention organization.
The joint statement was published on the show’s Instagram account, making the apology available separately from the episode. For listeners encountering the episode after its edit, the exchange itself is no longer in that version of the show.
Supporters of Kirk criticized the moment and urged advertisers to distance themselves from the podcast. The controversy consequently extended beyond the original exchange to the companies connected with the program and their responses to those calls.
What advertisers and Erika Kirk said
Cash App said it was no longer a sponsor of I’ve Had It. Chewy, meanwhile, said it did not sponsor or support the podcast. Those are different statements: Cash App confirmed the end of a sponsorship, while Chewy described its position on supporting the show.
The Wrap reported that ads for luggage brand Monos and wallet company Ridge appeared on the podcast’s YouTube page amid calls for brands to withdraw. An ad appearing on a page does not, by itself, establish the nature of a company’s relationship with the podcast.
On November 8, Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, criticized podcasters, comedians and commentators for laughing about political assassination. Her statement did not name Welch or Sullivan.
Her comments came amid a wider debate about jokes concerning her husband’s death. Deadline reported that she spoke out following criticism of a joke by comedian Dave Chappelle during a stand-up appearance. Her remarks addressed the broader treatment of political violence as entertainment, rather than identifying the I’ve Had It hosts in particular.
The developments span several days: the podcast episode was released on November 5, the hosts posted their apology on November 7, and Erika Kirk issued her broader criticism on November 8. The episode edit and the companies’ statements are separate responses to the controversy surrounding the exchange.
