Minocqua Brewing Company, a Wisconsin business known for its anti-Trump merchandise and social media posts, has found itself at the center of a national controversy after offering to sponsor the “I’ve Had It” podcast, whose hosts recently lost advertisers over comments about Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.
The brewery’s offer came after podcast hosts Jennifer Welch and Angie Sullivan laughed at a joke referencing digging up Kirk’s body following his assassination last year. The backlash from that moment led several sponsors to pull their support from the show.
On Sunday, Minocqua Brewing Company posted on Facebook offering to step in as a sponsor, while sharply criticizing Kirk. “Charlie Kirk was an awful human being, and everybody who’s not in a cult or a paid influencer on the right realizes that,” the post read. “We’re sorry you’ve lost a few sponsors because you laughed at a joke about this racist jerk. We probably don’t have as much money as the sponsors you lost, but we’d love to step in and partner with you if you’ll have us.”
The podcast’s producer, Kiley Josey, read the post aloud on Tuesday’s episode. Welch responded warmly to the gesture. “That is so sweet,” she said. “Well, Minocqua Brewing Company, shout out to you and no money necessary. We are happy to promote your products and everybody in Wisconsin if you’re … I don’t know if their products are online, but hit up the Minocqua Brewing Company.”
Josey also noted the brewery’s history of selling merchandise critical of President Donald Trump and the Republican Party, which drew further praise from Welch. “Anti-Trump merch. You know what? I mean free ads for them forever. Forever. They’re doing the good work. And I love a business that says we stand on business, and we’re not going to tolerate our customer base being treated like s—. If other businesses could only say the same,” she said.
Despite the on-air exchange, Welch later clarified to Fox News Digital that there is no formal relationship between the podcast and the brewery. “We have never heard of Minocqua Brewing Company before today. Neither of us drink. Several listeners tagged us in a post from this company, and we read the post on the show without knowing of their previous comments. We have no relationship with this company and don’t intend to have one,” she said.
Minocqua Brewing Company has previously attracted national scrutiny for provocative social media posts, including one promoting “free beer, all day long” on the day Trump dies. The company reiterated that message after a foiled attack at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in April, writing, “Well, we almost got #freebeerday. Either a brother or sister in the Resistance needs to work on their marksmanship or he faked another assassination to get a positive news cycle. We’ll never know.”
A Turning Point USA spokesperson, Andrew Kolvet, pushed back on the idea that the organization orchestrated the advertiser boycott against the podcast. “Jennifer Welch and Angie Sullivan have nobody to blame but themselves for the fact that their sponsors are cutting ties. Rather than accept responsibility for their own behavior, they want to blame Turning Point for noticing,” Kolvet said. “The organization didn’t coordinate this boycott; it happened organically. Everyday Americans were fed up with the fact they consistently laugh at, snicker, sneer and generally glorify assassination culture on their podcast. The audience — and their sponsors — are shouting at them that there is a line and they crossed it. They just refuse to listen.”
Minocqua Brewing Company declined to comment when contacted by Fox News Digital about the matter.
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