Tucker Carlson’s decision to interview the far-right antisemite Nick Fuentes on his podcast has sparked a fierce divide among conservatives. In the episode, both men criticised conservatives who support Israel, with Carlson singling out figures such as Senator Ted Cruz, former President George W Bush, and Ambassador Mike Huckabee as 'Christian Zionists' afflicted by a 'brain virus'. Fuentes, who has previously expressed admiration for Hitler and claimed Jews control the country, said on the podcast that 'organised Jewry' holds outsized influence and declared himself a fan of Joseph Stalin.
The Heritage Foundation, a prominent conservative thinktank behind the Project 2025 manifesto, has defended Carlson. Its president, Kevin Roberts, said Carlson 'remains and... always will be a close friend of the Heritage Foundation'. In a video response, Roberts argued that Christians can critique Israel without being antisemitic and that conservatives should not 'reflexively support any foreign government'. He condemned attempts to cancel or silence Carlson and Fuentes, calling those speaking out a 'venomous coalition'.
Senator Ted Cruz strongly condemned the interview, saying: 'If you sit there with someone who says Adolf Hitler was very, very cool... and you say nothing, then you are a coward, and you are complicit in that evil.' Cruz also claimed he had seen more antisemitism on the right in the last six months than in his entire life, describing it as a 'poison' and an 'existential crisis'.
Fuentes went further in a subsequent video, declaring: 'We are done with the Jewish oligarchy... the slavish surrender to Israel, the wars, the foreign aid, the policing of antisemitism.' He thanked Roberts for his defence, citing his 'courage in standing up for open discourse'. Meanwhile, the Republican Jewish Coalition’s CEO, Matt Brooks, said the Heritage Foundation’s stance left him 'appalled, offended and disgusted'. Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called for people aligned with the Heritage Foundation to 'disavow this dangerous mainstreaming of these hateful ideologies'.
