• UFC CEO Dana White publicly disagreed with conservatives pursuing cancel culture campaigns against liberals who celebrated Charlie Kirk’s death.
• White told CBS’s 60 Minutes people celebrating Kirk’s death are “disgusting” but opposes destroying their lives over mistakes.
• The stance puts White at odds with Attorney General Pam Bondi and Trump administration figures punishing Kirk’s critics.

WASHINGTON, DC (TDR) — Dana White just drew a line in the sand with his conservative allies. The UFC CEO, known for his close friendship with President Trump, broke ranks with the administration’s push to cancel critics of Charlie Kirk, calling it a betrayal of free speech principles.

Speaking on CBS’s 60 Minutes Sunday, White made his position clear:

“I’m a big believer in free speech. Unfortunately the most important speech to protect is hate speech. I hate cancel culture on both sides.”

Freedom-Loving Beachwear by Red Beach Nation - Save 10% With Code RVM10

The comments come as conservative activists have mounted an aggressive campaign to get Kirk’s critics fired from their jobs, contact their employers and publicly shame anyone who expressed anything less than reverence following Kirk’s tragic death two weeks ago.

When Free Speech Becomes Inconvenient

White didn’t pull punches about people celebrating Kirk’s death. “All the stuff that’s going on with Charlie right now, I think you’re a disgusting human being if you’re celebrating the death of another human being,” he said.

But he drew a sharp distinction between moral judgment and destroying careers:

“But I don’t like trying to destroy people’s lives over doing something dumb.”

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE THE DUPREE REPORT

It’s a stance that puts White directly at odds with his longtime friend Donald Trump and key administration figures like Attorney General Pam Bondi, who last week declared, “There’s free speech and then there’s hate speech, and there is no place, especially now” for criticism of Kirk.

The Conservative Cancel Machine

The campaign against Kirk’s critics has been swift and brutal. MSNBC fired analyst Matthew Dowd after he speculated about the shooter’s motivations. Multiple educators, employees and social media users have lost their jobs after conservatives reported their posts to employers.

It’s the exact playbook conservatives spent years condemning when progressives used it.

White’s pushback matters because of his unique position in Trump’s inner circle. The two have been friends for over 20 years, dating back to when Trump hosted early UFC events at his Atlantic City casino. White introduced Trump at the 2024 Republican National Convention and remains one of the president’s most visible business allies.

A Principled Stance or Political Calculation?

Last week, White called for unity following Kirk’s death, saying he wanted to see the country “stop all the infighting and the finger-pointing” and return to normalcy.

His 60 Minutes comments suggest he meant it.

“People make mistakes, people are gonna do dumb things,” White explained. “I don’t like trying to destroy people’s lives over doing something dumb.”

The question is whether White’s stance will influence other conservatives or simply mark him as an outlier in a movement increasingly comfortable with using cancel culture tactics when it serves their purposes.

The Free Speech Contradiction

The irony hasn’t been lost on critics. After years of Republican complaints about progressive cancel culture, censorship and ideological discrimination, prominent conservatives are now actively working to punish speech they find offensive.

White seems to recognize the hypocrisy. His emphasis on protecting “hate speech” and opposing cancel culture “on both sides” reads as a direct rebuke to conservatives who suddenly discovered exceptions to free speech principles.

Whether his voice carries weight in an increasingly polarized GOP remains to be seen. But in a political moment defined by tribal loyalty, White’s willingness to break with his allies on principle stands out.

Is Dana White right to oppose conservative cancel culture, or should Kirk’s critics face consequences? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Follow The Dupree Report for more coverage of politics, culture and the free speech debate.

Freedom-Loving Beachwear by Red Beach Nation - Save 10% With Code RVM10