Topline
Tucker Carlson’s interview with white supremacist Nick Fuentes has divided some in President Donald Trump’s base, raising concerns among the GOP that Fuentes—once exiled by Republicans as a dangerous fringe figure—is being allowed back into the mainstream.
Donald Trump shakes hands with Tucker Carlson at the end of a live interview in Glendale, Arizona, on October 31, 2024. (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)
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Key Facts
Carlson’s Oct. 27 interview with Fuentes, who has praised Adolf Hitler and regularly makes racist, sexist and antisemitic comments, builds on a recent resurgence of publicity for Fuentes since he was banned from most social media sites over the past five years and widely denounced by Republicans.
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, is the latest Republican to condemn Carlson and Republicans who have stayed silent on the matter, calling Fuentes “a poison that is profoundly dangerous” during a speech Friday at the Federalist Society’s National Lawyers Convention in Washington, Politico reported, adding, “every one of us has an obligation to stand up and say what is wrong.”
In the interview with Fuentes, Carlson called Cruz and other Republicans who are firm defenders of Israel, including former President George W. Bush, “Christian Zionists” who have been “seized by this brain virus” and said “I dislike them more than anyone.”
The Daily Wire’s Ben Shapiro—a prominent voice leading the criticism of the interview—got into a heated debate with Megyn Kelly about the issue during a live taping of her podcast on Thursday: “If I see somebody breach basic moral values by having on a Nazi . . .then I’m going to speak out about that,” Shapiro said, noting Fuentes recently suggested “the Venezuelan regime of Nicolás Maduro is actually not that bad.”
Kelly responded by saying “I’m not here to defend Tucker, but he’s made the point that Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro is culturally conservative,” prompting Shapiro to answer “who gives a s—t.”
The Fuentes interview has also ignited internal debate at the Trump-aligned Heritage Foundation after its president, Kevin Roberts, initially defended Carlson then apologized on Wednesday, telling staff “I made a mistake, and I let you down and I let down this institution,” according to leaked footage of a Heritage Foundation town hall.
Heritage Foundation President Faces Backlash After Defending Carlson
Roberts defended Carlson as a “close friend of the Heritage Foundation” in a video on X in the wake of the backlash and accused “the venomous coalition attacking him” of “sowing division.” He said, “I disagree with and even abhor things that Nick Fuentes says, but cancelling him is not the answer either.” The video prompted calls for Roberts to step down and resignations of at least five members of the Heritage Foundation’s antisemitism taskforce, according to the Washington Post, plus the resignation of Roberts’ chief of staff.